TFD creates plan to stop responding to false alarms at UA since it happens 99% of the time | News

TUCSON, Ariz. (KVOA) — The City of Tucson has come up with a plan to have its firefighters not respond to false fire alarms at the University of Arizona (U of A) campus.

The Tucson Fire Department (TFD) says almost all the time its crews head there it turns out to be nothing. It’s something TFD says ties up resources.

Every time TFD is called to respond, firefighters get on a truck and rush to the emergency as quick as possible. 

But for TFD, fire alarms at the U of A have been anything but an emergency. 

“One time it woke us up at like two, three in the morning and we all had to walk and stand on the edge of the street and then it was like a false alarm so we went back in,” said Alexa Moody, a student who lives in the U of A dorms.

Moody says false fire alarms go off constantly here.

“And it’s just like annoying because there’s never actually a fire here,” Moody said. 

And there is data to back this up, the City of Tucson says 99 percent of the time firefighters head to the U of A for an alarm call, they are false.

The department has responded to the campus 1,000 times in a 2 year period. 

“We would rather them be false alarms but we also have resources that are tied up on those false alarms for anywhere between 5 and 15 minutes,” said Tucson Assistant Fire Chief Barrett Baker. 

Baker says when that happens firefighters are unable to respond to other emergencies. 

So now there is a plan to have U of A police initially investigate these fire alarms rather than have TFD do it. 

“If there is anything secondary then they’ll immediately call dispatch and we will be in route,” Baker said.

The Tucson City Council will vote Tuesday to approve or deny this plan but for student Alexa Leiting who also lives in the U of A dorms she says it’s a logical idea. 

“I just don’t think it’s smart to have firefighters come here and waste their time when they could be helping other people,” Leiting said.

If this plan is approved it would last at least five years.