" Kinda over kill for a small fire in an a/c unit. 24 firefighters, 8 apparatus and 2 battalion chiefs - What one chief couldn't handle it? Just another example of LFR wasting taxpayers money and stripping the city of resources for a minor HVAC fire. "

" Do you think just possibly that the 24 firefighters, 8 apparatus and 2 battalion chiefs responded because of the potential risk due to a 911 call coming in from a large shopping center. I sure hope you never need the LFR to respond for an emergency to assist you. Maybe for you they'll only send 1 truck 0 apparatus and 0 battalion chiefs. It would be such a a shame to waste taxpayers money on a complainer like you!! "

" Jon- you should've applied for the fire chief spot that was open awhile back. I'm sure LFD knows how to manage their staff without your expert input.

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" Jon - would you rather they send one truck and end up having the whole place go up in flames while waiting for backup? We have excellent professional fire protection services in this city and I am grateful. No I am not a member nor is a family member part of the LFD. "

" So Jon, if it had been a larger problem than found and only 2-6 firefighters and 1 battalion chief had showed up and people died you would be complaining about that. LFR does a wonderful job, as a victim of a house fire many years ago I cannot say enough about our fire department!!! "

" Jon, the article said they responded but that dosn't mean they stuck around. I am sure that the Shopko employees, or whoever called 911, did not know that it was contained in the AC. And also I would guess that when you receive a fire call from a large store, where there could be a large number of people including children, then you come out in force. I am sure that once they realized that it was a small fire that many of the firefighters left. "

" Jon W., I believe you're the same person who would be complaining if the fire was bigger and they hadn't had enough personnel on hand. Hindsight is 20/20. I'm sure people think the worst when a building fills with smoke, as they should! There are bigger wastes of tax dollars than ensuring safety in a fire. Seriously. "

" It's easy to say that now but when the call comes in and there's a reported fire at a large store do you think a small response would be correct?

Yes, it was just a HVAC fire but until they go look, they don't know that. I say way to go firefighters! I'd rather they over respond than under respond any day. "

" I drove by there and it was major overkill for a "small fire". Firefighters standing all over the place with that "I'd rather be in a recliner" look all over there faces. Oh well, diesel is only $4.50 a gallon, the more firetrucks idling the merrier. "

" At first glance I would say overkill is the safer option, however I drove by after I got off work at about 3:45 and there were alot of men in uniform standing around the parking lot not doing much. That being said they don't get paid by the hour so if they are setting at the station or standing in the Shopko parking lot does it make that much of a difference? "

" I highly commend the LFD for responding the way they did. Sometimes the best defense is a good offense. Jon W must have a short memory or didn't read that not even a year ago 9 firemen were killed in Charleston battling a fire in a retail (furniture) store full of combustible materials. My mother was also saved from a fire in a retail store. Although not a Shopko scale, it burned to the ground in 10 min. This could have been a different story had the fire been given an extra 5-10 min. That makes me pretty d@#$ grateful these men decided to show up and not "be in a recliner". These guys showed up not only to protect other's lives & property, but also to protect themselves & their peers. The LFD may have its faults, but this definitely wasn't one of those. Great job fellas. "

" I am so sick of hearing people post on practically every article about how their taxes are being wasted. Look into how much people in European countries pay in taxes and for gas too for that matter. Many of those countries pay far more than we do and have far better qualities of life and amenities than we do. It is just getting so old. "

" Responding with the number of resources seems appropriate. However I have to agree with Jon that after the fire was quickly extinguished then there was no reason to keep that number of apparatus on scene or that number of firefighters. What would have happened if there had been another event. The only 2 truck companies on the south side of Lincoln were committed to this event and bascially all of the engine companies. LFR needs to make sure they respond accordingly but they also need to get the resources back in service quickly so as to protect the city. Having guys stand in the parking lot shooting the bull for an hour in my opinion did not look good. "

" I agree with Jon. There's no need to send every vehicle in town for an HVAC fire. The fire was at 27th & Hwy 2 and the closest fire house is at 27th & Old Cheney. It's not like it would the building would burn to the ground in the time it took backup to get there.

Plus, once it becomes blatantly obvious that all of that manpower is not needed, send them home. LFD employees are taxpayers too. They should be responsible with our money. "

" Maybe some explanation of how things work with LFR would be helpful. First off, when a fire call comes in, a pre-set number of engines/trucks/squads are sent. For a structure the size of Shopko, it would be 4 engines, 2 trucks, 1 squad/medic, 1 Bat Chief, and Air 14 which is the utility truck/SCBA refill truck. A duty inspector may also be called. As units arrive and the nature of the fire is determined, certain units will be put back in service if they are not needed. If you go to:
http://www.lincoln.ne.gov/asp/city/rirmedia.asp
you can see the daily runs for LFR and see who is dispatched, arrival time and back in service time. For this call, 4 engines were dispatched, 1 engine that was not dispatched took the call, probably because they were closer than one of the dispatched units so one engine was put back in service at that time. E4 was also put back in service shortly after the call and E6, 7, 8 stayed on scene. Trucks 1 & 8 were on scene the whole time, this was most likely due to equipment being used off those trucks. The Truck companies carry rescue and ventilation equipment. If the store was full of smoke, ventilation was obviously required, thus they had to stay. The engines would stay incase something did flare up, they were probably tied to hydrants for suppression. Medic 6 and Air 14 were there the whole time as well for support. Would hate to send the medic unit away, then have someone fall or get hurt.
Also, to the comment of all the apparatus for that side of town out on this call, the responding apparatus come from different directions and if all the apparatus from one area are at an incident, truck move ups are done where engines and trucks from different stations are moved up to make sure there is coverage across the city still. Bat 2 was probably in the area and stopped as well, you can see from the link above, Bat 2 repsonded to another fire call at 15:36, before the Shopko incident was over.
I don't think there was any over expenditure of resources here, it seems normal. You wouldn't send 1 engine and 1 truck and if there is a fire then send more, a fire doubles in size every minute and you need a quick response with appropriate levels to any call. LFR has a great history of reducing property loss and should be commended on their daily efforts.
And no, I am not nor never have been a member of LFR, I am a volunteer for a rural community but have a little understanding of how things operate. Station 1 has a great museum if you have never been there and I am sure the firefighters on duty if you go to visit would love to talk about their procedures. Make sure and tell them thanks when you are there! "

" Bruce your comment said it all!!! I get very upset when people blame our fire and rescue departments for tax reasons. I would rather see my tax dollars going to the fire and rescue departments than our horrible property tax rates! I was a volunteer firefighter myself before I moved to Lincoln. I would also have to agree that they sent an adequate amount of fire apparatus because of the size of the building and capacity. I know I wouldn't want to go with just one engine and one truck! That is just ridiculous! It could have been more serious than that and if there was 20 to 30 people in the building you need an adequate amount of firefighters to get people out! Just because you are a firefighter doesn't mean you are a super human and can carry multiple people out by yourself all at once. Some people just need to put their thinking caps on before blaming it on people who's job is to save your life. "

" I, too, am tired of taxpayers armchair quarterbacking and micromanaging, especially with public safety issues. If you see ways to improve, involve yourself in by getting the professional education, experience, and knowhow to make a difference by working from within. Be a leader, not a heckler.
It's one thing to state that broad-scale policies are not in alignment with philosophies of public service and the People; its quite different to nitpick every detail of operations. Clearly, the LFR has an effective and praiseworthy track record. If you think otherwise, ask an insurance agent that has worked in other communities.
Lastly, it has been stated in previous comments that an overreaction in safety matters in preferable to unorganized inaction (see Katrina). Look at the facts, which Bryce clearly stated, and have confidence that the taxes you pay are being spent better by people that have chosen their careers based on public service rather than profit-making. "