ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The sound of an ambulance backing into its parking space stopped our interview just a few minutes in. 

“It never stops here,” said Albuquerque Fire Rescue’s Public Information Officer Lt. Jason Fejer.

KOB 4 met Fejer at AFR Station 5 in Albuquerque’s International District. Right when we pulled up, Engine 5 left on a call.

The station was recently ranked 15th busiest fire station in the country. The ranking comes from the national Firehouse Run Survey, but Fejer said it’s not necessarily a list AFR wants to be on.

Part two of the survey was just released, and we’re now learning more about what changes the department has made.

“It’s a good way for us to evaluate how we’re doing as a department. And really sometimes it also shows us where we need to add resources, what we’ve been doing here at Station 5,” Fejer said about the part two results.

The station had over 16,000 calls for service in 2023, that’s 10,000 more than in 2022. Because of the high call volume, the station added resources.

“The addition of Medic 12 really helped with Rescue 5 over here, and made those calls a little bit more manageable as far as the demand goes,” said Fejer.

He added the International District faces certain challenges other districts don’t have.

“It’s a unique district. It’s small, but it’s pretty densely populated. So, there’s always been a high demand for services in this area,” he said.

Fejer also says most calls overall are for EMS, like drug-related medical issues. In the wintertime, more calls are for outdoor fires as people try and stay warm.

The survey also lists starting pay for departments. AFR sits at just over $40,000, a little lower than other New Mexico cities listed in the survey.

Fejer says increasing pay is something AFR is working on.

“We did just sign a new collective bargaining agreement with the city that addressed some of those things, like starting pay. They’re looking at, well, some of our junior firefighters are getting longevity pay now, so just try to enhance some of that base pay, especially at the lower ranks,” said Fejer. 

The collective bargaining agreement is for three years.

The survey also ranked things like busiest chief, busiest ambulance, and busiest heavy rescue. For the full survey, click here.