We the undersigned say NO to Cincinnati's city manager recommending that the Pleasant Ridge Firehouse on Montgomery Rd., Engine 8 , be shut down. We are in strong opposition to this proposal, we want to save our firehouse, and keep our level of safety. Engine 8 already serves a large area spanning form Bond Hill to Silverton. Engine 8 is equipped to be a paramedic, which is advanced life support beyond the regular EMT. No other firehouse within a local radius has that status. Closing Engine 8 would increase response times double or even triple. So 4-6 minutes becomes 8-12 minutes. CFD firehouses are located strategically in and respond to dual emergencies Fire/EMS in 4 minutes 90% of the time. This is critical in medical calls due to cardiac arrest, stroke, and respiratory distress. If a person is without oxygen past 6 minutes or more the outlook is grim. As for fire responses, fire doubles in size every minute. Quick response time is the difference between losing one room and losing an entire structure. In human costs, time is the difference in a person living and dying when trapped in a structure. A response time of 4-6 minutes is imperative to ensure successful fire and health runs. If Engine 8 were not where it was our community would see an increase in response times beyond effectiveness.