In his 30 years as Fall River fire chief – including 47 total on staff – Gene Adam has seen ups and downs when it comes to staffing.
As a small town, volunteer-based organization, the Fall River Fire Department has never had an over-abundance of personnel, but in recent years, numbers have been especially low. Adam, who plans to retire at the end of 2020, would like to see more firefighters join his staff before calling it a career.
Adam said the department currently has about 20 active members with three prospective firefighters taking classes. Fall River recently welcomed a new firefighter that Adam said is bright and should be a strong addition to the staff. But there are plenty of opportunities for others to join the department and help the community.
“It’s always been a fluctuation in all the years I’ve been here,” Adam said. “We have a good, young, smart group that is on board now. We have the quality, we just don’t have the quantity.”