Feb 7, 2016 5 min read

When Canonsburg native Tim Solobay took over as state fire commissioner in January 2015, many fire departments across Pennsylvania were not reporting calls they answered to the state.

But thanks to a new web-based system known as PennFIRS through Emergency Reporting, Solobay is seeing the number of departments reporting those calls increase, which will help not only his office but the local departments pinpoint where they should be placing their resources. The state entered into a contract with the company that developed the system July 1 and has been offering seminars across the state to help departments make the switch. Departments choosing to continue to use the former software system can do so at their own expense.

“This reporting system will help us develop where we need to go and track certain trends,” said Solobay, who is first assistant chief with the Canonsburg Volunteer Fire Department after previously serving as chief. “There is no real penalty for not submitting reports, (but) they have to in order to be eligible for grants.”

Solobay said as of the middle of January, 44 of the 52 fire departments in Washington County have signed up for the reporting system, along with seven of the 16 departments in Greene County.

Information reported includes the address of the call, the date and time, what it came in as and what it ended up being, Solobay said. It also includes information on what equipment responded, what other departments may have assisted, and the names of the firefighters.

“It is a tool fire departments can use in planning budgets and documenting hours spent firefighting and training,” he added. “It is a good, detailed document.”

Solobay said the new system has been well received because the reports can be submitted from any mobile device – a laptop, tablet or even cellphone.

“It is one thing that makes it more convenient for the firefighters,” Solobay said. “And hopefully that will result in more compliance in submitting reports. My goal is 100 percent compliance.”

Charleroi fire Chief Bob Whiten is one of those who prefers the new system.

“It was so easy to pick up on,” Whiten said. “With the old system, I had to stay at the station to fill out the reports. Now I can just do it from home. I can work on the reports for a while, stop to take a break and go back to them without worrying about losing any information.

“Plus there is no maintenance for the system,” he added. “The state takes care of all of that.”

West Finley fire Chief Steve Emery agrees the new system is better.

“It is more user-friendly,” Emery said. “The report is reviewed by the state. If there is a blank or there is incorrect information, you get an email and it won’t allow the incident to be closed out.

“It breaks down by percentages the number of medical calls, structure fires and car accidents we answer,” he added. “We cover one-third of East Finley. The report tells me how many calls we’ve been on there or in West Finley.”

One piece of advice from Emery: Go to the training seminar offered by the state.

“It was helpful,” Emery said. “The instructor walked us right through it.”

Waynesburg-Franklin Township fire Chief Jeff Marshall said he has been filling out reports using some version of a reporting system for 10 years.

“The new report is easier to use, tracking the calls and who was on the call,” Marshall said. “And you don’t have to worry about the software locking up.”

Chartiers Township firefighter Matt Kolovich helps Chief Vince Altieri by handling the reports for that department.

“Some of the things in the new system are a little different,” Kolovich said. “But it is a lot better than the old system.”

Canton fire Chief Dave Gump also prefers the new reporting system.

“Once you get used to it, it is whole lot simpler,” Gump said. “It breaks down the calls. And it tells us what each firefighter does.”

Jim Rankin handles the reports for Avella Volunteer Fire Department, where he is a captain, and also for Hanover Township’s fire department, where is a paid firefighter.

“It is much easier to upload the report,” Rankin said. “In Hanover, it is used for truck maintenance, payroll, inventory and tracking training.

“We can use the information to compare our response times to the national standard,” he said. “And I can do it from my laptop or tablet when I am at home so I don’t have to go to the station. I can log on and off the report multiple times without worrying about losing the information.”

This is the first year that Avella has filed reports with the state, Rankin said.

“We’ve had no issues and no invalid incidents,” he added.