05:21 PM PDT on Monday, August 15, 2005

Reported by Lee Stoll | lee@krem.com

SPOKANE - Firefighters say the city of Spokane is in critical danger after severe budget an personnel cuts this year and Friday's thunderstorm that hit the region only exposed their weaknesses.

City firefighters say this year's cutbacks have increased their response times which they say worked against them Friday night.

After losing 50 firefighters this year to retirement and layoffs, Spokane firefighters union president Greg Born says Friday's multiple fires exposed how weak the city's fire department is.

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The most devastating blaze consumed an apartment building at the intersection of Monroe and Mansfield, leaving 28 people homeless.

“If he would have had another crew like they usually do ... they would have stopped it," Born said.

In the last 25 years the number of engine companies in Spokane has dropped from 17 to 13 but annual responses are up from 5,000 to more than 20,000.

Other departments are helping Spokane out thanks to mutual aid agreements; on Friday for example Spokane borrowed an engine from Spokane County District 8 during the storm.

With the city still facing a $6 Million budget deficit, agencies are worried the city will be borrowing even more in the future.

Budget negotiations between the city and firefighters begin later this fall.