The information provided in this overview is intended to give the reader an understanding of the Fire Department’s Request for Services over the past five years. The El Cerrito Fire Department responds to a wide variety of calls for service. Calls for service are classified as follows:

• Fire – Structure Fires, Vehicle Fires, Wildland Fires, Explosions
• Medical – Rescues, Vehicle Accidents
• Hazardous Condition – Spills, Electrical Problems, Toxic Conditions
• Service Calls – Person in Distress, Lock Outs, Water Problems
• Good Intent – Cancelled Calls, Wrong Locations, No Hazard Found
• False Calls – False Alarms, System Malfunctions, Malicious False Alarms 

The Fire Department responds to approximately 3,000 calls for service a year; the following is a list of total responses for the past five years:

Year     Number of Responses
2013     2,956
2012     2,973
2011     2,777
2010     2,764
2009     2,823

As you can see, the Department’s responses remain fairly consistent, with a five year average of 2,858 responses annually.

The following lists the fire loss for the City of El Cerrito from 2009 thru 2013:

Year     Dollar Loss
2013     $131,755
2012     $428,250
2011     $883,950
2010     $561,445
2009     $367,250

Fire loss over this five year period averages $474,530 per year, down from the spike we experienced two years ago. Fire loss averages remain low compared to cities with similar demographics. In closing, we suspect that requests for service will remain flat over the next calendar year.