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Now there is a typical ridiculous comment which is almost as buffoonish as the Asst. Chiefs comment. So lets look at the facts.

The department is 15% over budget on fuel and there is still more than 1 fiscal quarter yet to go. So that means at a minimum they will be over budget by at least 30%. Let's examine the foolish comments.

In one breath the chief justifies this poor behavior by saying that "we need to run the equipment to keep them in good working condition". In the next breath he says that the department did 35,256 runs. Umm, contradiction at best.

He says that the runs to the supermarket have nothing to do with the fuel being over budget. I guess his mentality is such that he believes that when a truck goes to the market and is left idling for 30 minutes, that it somehow is not burning any fuel. These vehicles average 2-3 miles per gallon, and contrary to what the ole chief may think, it all adds up. Particularly when the men shop for every meal. They are not shopping and stocking a refrigerator.

The comment in the above posts suggest that the men are in the station for 34 hours at a time. Another foolish comment as the shift is 2 -10 hr days, followed by 2- 14 hour nights followed by 4 days off.

The problem is that the department has been unable to control any line item in their budget for years. The bigger problem is that arrogance that is publicly displayed when shopping is a violation of the RI DEM Air quality regulation 45.7.5 which clearly states that fire personnel cannot idle an apparatus for the convenience of the operator. They are not exempt from the law.

It is this mentality which causes this department and every other department to over spend budgets. It is wasteful, and contrary to what the ole chief may think, the general public does not feel that is is good for the community to see the men wasting fuel, breaking laws, and using taxpayer apparatus to go buy popcorn. When your city is closing down senior centers but giving fire department personnel bonuses of $1,092,421 there is a problem. It's called fiscal incompetence. So if it makes you feel better, disparage the messenger.