East Longmeadow Police Chief Mark Williams and Fire Chief Christopher Beecher speak with the Town Council about the number of emergency calls they receive.
Reminder Publishing photo by Sarah Heinonen
EAST LONGMEADOW — East Longmeadow Police Chief Mark Williams and Fire Chief Christopher Beecher delivered an update to the Town Council on Sept. 23 regarding their departments’ needs and interactions with the community.
Williams reported that there had been 109 physical arrests in town during fiscal year 2025, which ended on June 30.
While he did not have data on previous years, he said he believes that the frequency of crime committed in East Longmeadow is “slightly trending down” and this trend is being seen in cities and towns nationwide. Property crime is the most common incident the ELPD responds to. Unfortunately, because the police are usually called to a home or vehicle break-in after the offender has left, Williams said, “They sometimes get solved, but often don’t. They’re very challenging.” Most arrests in town are the result of domestic violence or shoplifting, the latter of which seems to be rising, he said.
Councilor Marilyn Richards said the use of “unregistered dirt bikes” on public ways and sidewalks have become more frequent. Williams confirmed that using a motorized bike on the street is illegal. It is an issue the department is trying to address, he said, however enforcement is “highly challenging.” He explained, “The pursuit of anything motor vehicle, much less motorcycle with likely a juvenile on it, is really discouraged in our industry at this point.” He said Springfield has a task force dedicated to the issue, adding, “I think we get a little spill-over” from Springfield and Enfield. The bikes can be seized if the person driving is being taken into custody.
Richards asked if there was evidence that the people operating the bikes were also committing other crimes. “I’m not personally or professionally aware of a crime syndicate that’s tied to people escaping on the dirt bikes,” said Williams. The issue is mainly one of being a community nuisance and unsafe operation.
While crime numbers may be trending down, fire calls are up and have been increasing for at least the past three years, Beecher said. In August, the department responded to 446 calls. There were four days on which they received more than 20 calls.
“There’s a tremendous effort that our members are shouldering,” Beecher said. “They’re doing a great job with it. They’re all obviously very dedicated to what they’re doing, and it shows in the care that we provide for our residents.”
The nature of Fire Department calls has been shifting. As is the case for most fire departments with EMS capabilities, 80% of calls are typically medical-related, while 20% are for fires. In FY25, however, 86% of calls were for medical issues, including transport to hospitals. The other 14% were for fires. Beecher said calls for this year are on track to be split similarly.
Beecher said there was a 21% increase in the number of calls from group homes over FY24. That number is up 73% from FY23. He attributed this, in part, to the fact that those facilities serve people experiencing mental health crises. Beecher predicted that trend to continue through the rest of this year.
Williams nodded in agreement. He said, “Police work is more than law enforcement” and officers often respond to a variety of calls, including those for people in crisis. “It really is the service-oriented part of our jobs,” he said.
Richards asked about the reasons that the Fire Department is called for mutual aid, the practice of responding to calls in other municipalities when needed. She recalled that the East Longmeadow Fire Department used to be one of few in the area with a ladder truck, and therefore, it was called to respond to structure fires in other towns. Beecher said most area fire departments have outfitted themselves with similar equipment in recent years.
Longmeadow represents the largest portion of mutual aid calls due to proximity, Beecher said, particularly as there is heavy call volume at the town’s congregate care facilities near the East Longmeadow border. The towns also share a radio frequency, making it easy for the fire departments to respond to one another.
Council President Connor O’Shea thanked the chiefs. “The numbers don’t capture everything that the departments do and are responding to all the time,” he said. “There’s a lot of activity going on every day in town, so it’s nice to have you, your teams working hard on that.”
