Cincinnati firefighters on Friday began requiring 24-hour police protection for runs in areas considered volatile, leaving some Over-the-Rhine residents vulnerable to emergency and fire service delays.

Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers Jeff Davis and Lori Lindsey talk with Fire Captain Chris Mills at Engine 14 firehouse at Fifth Street and Central Avenue. Troopers are protecting firefighters on runs. (Glenn Hartong photo) | ZOOM |

        Firefighters will not go into an area from Interstate 75 east to Interstate 71 and from 12th Street north to McMicken Avenue without police protection, said District Chief John Zompero.

        “We fear that we're going to be accosted or attacked,” Chief Zompero said. “We don't know what we're up against.”

        Firefighters have been threatened during the recent civil disturbance while on calls in that area, now labeled “the hot zone,” he said. At one stop, a man fired a weapon in the air and insinuated a firefighter would be next, he said.

        At least two and perhaps more officers from the Cincinnati Police Division or the Ohio State Highway Patrol will accompany firefighters on all calls in the zone. Since Tuesday, police have been accompanying firefighters there in the evening, but the 24-hour requirement came as added protection, Chief Zompero said.

        Waiting for police who could be on other calls could mean delays, he said, though police are now stationed in many of the firehouses.

        “Anytime we're delayed in our response time, we're concerned,” he said.

        “But now our major concern is to get there safely. When you're in a war-like zone, you're taking too many risks without protection.”

        Firefighters have mixed feelings.

        “I don't think we're the target out there but we do need protection,” said Lt. David Johnson, a firefighter for 10 years. “It's just in case you get those guys that are out of hand. And we are city figures. You get those guys who think we are part of the problem.”

        Firefighter Benjamin Thomas said the police presence may disrupt firefighters' relationship with people in the community.

        “My personal opinion is it brought more danger to us,” he said. “It's just that they might feel like we're one” and the same.

        Firefighters sometimes feel welcome where police are not, he said.

        Ricky Woods, an Over-the-Rhine resident, said he doubts the firefighters need protection. “But they should go on and wait (for police) if they feel threatened for their lives,” he said.

        Jim Insprucker, bookkeeper for Smitty's Men's and Boy's Wear on Vine Street in Over-the-Rhine, said he'd hate to see any decrease in fire service.

        “It may be needed now more than normal,” he said. “But the city's gotta do what it's gotta do.”

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