The year-to-year change in calls for service for the Escalon Consolidated Fire Protection District was slight, but there all the same.

Fire Chief Rick Mello said the department responded to 1,204 total incidents during 2021, a rise from the 1,169 calls recorded during 2020.

“Our EMS, Emergency Medical Services calls, declined slightly while our vehicle accidents, vegetation fires and structure fires saw a small increase,” the chief said.

The EMS calls totaled 692 for 2021, which was down from the 705 in 2020.

Statistics also show that the department’s busiest month in 2021 was May, with 125 calls. January was the slowest in 2021, with 76 calls recorded.

July was the busiest month for fires with 17 and the busiest months for motor vehicle accidents were February and November, both with 14. Medical aid calls peaked in December with 80.

“The percentage of our medical aid calls declined (overall) again, it was down to 57.4 percent of our total calls,” Mello noted, after being at just over 60 percent of the calls during 2020.

“I think that is from a combination of things, I think there is still some pandemic hesitation, people not wanting to be sick,” he said, noting that where in the past people might have chosen to seek help and go to a hospital for a minor aliment, now they often choose to stay home.

By month in 20021, calls recorded were: January, 76; February, 81; March, 82; April, 85; May, 125; June, 100; July, 110; August, 112; September, 87; October, 120; November, 115; December, 111.

Across all the different categories, there were a total of 692 medical aid calls; 116 motor vehicle accidents; 109 fires and 287 miscellaneous calls for service.

Mello said he feels 2022 will see the department continue to stay busy, especially as the pandemic restrictions continue to ease and people get back more into the mainstream of everyday living.

The department has a trio of shifts, with A Shift including Battalion Chief Dan Morriss and firefighter Dave Velasco; B Shift with Chief Moe Silva and firefighter Cassidy Bohannon; C Shift with Battalion Chief Joe Pelot and firefighter Ryan Burr. There is also a slate of reserve and volunteer firefighters that help staff the department on a regular basis.