By MES Dispatch Staff
The Briefing
- The Folsom, California, Fire Department returned Engine 39 to service Sunday, 11 months after budget cuts forced it out of service last October.
- The department funded the restoration through a new staffing model that hired 14 single-role EMTs and paramedics to handle ambulance and medical calls.
- Fire Chief Jason Solak estimated the staffing change would save the department up to $210,800 this fiscal year.
- Engine 39 operates from Station 39 on the city’s eastern edge and can also serve as a wildland fire engine, adding capacity in an area vulnerable to wildfires.
- Since returning to service, the engine’s three-person crew has averaged four calls every 24 hours, mostly medical, and has not yet responded to a fire.
FOLSOM, Calif. — The Folsom Fire Department returned an engine to service Sunday after city budget cuts forced the department to pull the truck from service in October 2025, according to Battalion Chief Nick Lawlor.
The engine operates out of Station 39 at 2139 Ritchie St. at Empire Ranch Road on the city’s eastern edge. Its return after 11 months adds fire and emergency medical coverage in an area particularly vulnerable to wildfires and gives the department another crew to respond to major incidents citywide, Lawlor said Tuesday. “Now, they are just one more company that can help out on multi-alarm fires,” he said. “When the system gets really big, we have more resources to draw from, to answer our calls when we’re in very busy times of the day.”
The department announced the engine’s return last month after introducing a new staffing model that freed up the necessary funding. Under the model, the department has hired 14 single-role paramedics and EMTs who will staff ambulances and respond to medical emergencies, allowing firefighters to focus on fires, rescues, natural gas investigations and other calls.
Fire Chief Jason Solak told the City Council last month that the change would save the department up to $210,800 this fiscal year. “Our new single-role program gives us the flexibility and operational depth we need to stay resilient,” Solak said in a statement. “It allows us to recruit efficiently, manage personnel costs, and optimize our daily operations — all while keeping fiscal responsibility to our taxpayers at the forefront.”
Engine 39’s three-person crew includes a paramedic and can also staff a wildland fire engine, adding capacity to respond to wildfires along the city’s eastern and southern flanks. Lawlor said the additional crew also strengthens Folsom’s ability to work with neighboring agencies, including the El Dorado Hills Fire Department and Cal Fire, on wildfires and other major incidents.
The engine has not yet responded to any fires, Lawlor said, but has assisted with other community emergencies, including medical calls. Since returning to service Sunday, its crew has responded to an average of four calls every 24 hours.