AMHERST — An Amherst firefighter driving an engine to a fire or other emergency ensures a prompt response, but once on scene, a single responder has to wait until other members of the career, on-call or student force arrive.

“You can’t effectively do anything at a fire with a single person,” said Sarah Forsaith, president of the Amherst Firefighters Local 1764.

But the occasional challenge of having a solitary firefighter on board an engine should soon go away. The town is adding four firefighters and eventually increasing the minimum staffing to 10 full-time firefighter-paramedics year-round, upping this from the current seven minimum during the summer and eight minimum during the academic year. This will mean that at least four full-time personnel are on board an engine every time one goes out.

The first change in minimum staffing in decades will mean meeting an appropriate standard, allowing three ambulances, each with two firefighter-paramedics on board, to be out at the same time that a fully staffed engine is available, said Fire Chief Lindsay Stromgren.

The four new recruits are in the middle of a monthlong orientation, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays, before they begin their official tenures with the department. Three are former members of the student force: recent University of Massachusetts graduates Sherly Gomerez and Jacob Smith, and recent Hampshire College graduate Evelyn Wales, as well as Emma Elson, a Hadley native who has worked for the Hadley Fire Department.

The orientation at the North fire station includes learning about the gear and air packs, the pumps on the fire trucks and beginning to memorize streets and addresses throughout town.

The training will allow them to drive the engines and operate the pumps and, even before being fully trained as paramedics, to ride third on ambulances with two other firefighter-paramedics.

Under Capts. Ben Graham and Chris Goodhind, the recruits learn “donning drills” in which they have 60 seconds to properly get on the gear — such as the turnout coat, pants, gloves and helmet — and another 60 seconds to get the air pack attached.

Before getting into the fire engine to go on a ride, Gomerez, formerly the captain of the student force, said getting to know each neighborhood in town is important.

“I just want to learn all the streets,” Gomerez said.

“We need to get places fast,” Graham, explained, but before heading out, he shows a binder of up-to-date printed maps with all streets, also showing where fire hydrants are located. The training will familiarize the recruits with the roads and comes with warnings about not taking routes that would necessitate going below the underpasses on South East Street and Snell Street, or over a temporary bridge on Station Road.

Other aspects of the training include using the hoses, having space on the University of Massachusetts Amherst campus to practice with these and the ladders.

Stromgren said the new hires are part of a three-year plan involving Town Manager Paul Bockelman and Finance Director Sean Mangano to sustain the department. Two are replacements for vacancies, one is from a frozen position in last year’s budget and the fourth is a new position. There will be six new positions, bringing full staffing to 55 members by fiscal year 2029.

“It makes a functional difference for the town,” Stromgren said.

While Stromgren said there is an assumption that college students drive up medical calls — such as when they drink too much or consume drugs — this past weekend, from 6 p.m. Friday to 8 a.m. Monday, there were 53 calls, 36 of which were ambulance-related. Of those ambulance runs, about two-thirds were to assist people who are 65 and over.

Forsaith said the new hires are an important step in the right direction to improve safety, both for the personnel and for the town.

“This is absolutely huge, and we’re grateful for the work the fire chief has put in for increasing staffing,” Forsaith said. “This shows he’s committed to public safety.”

The safer staffing levels mean appropriately staffed apparatus and heading toward achieving the National Fire Protection Association 1710 national standard defining the minimum deployment, staffing and response times for career fire departments.

“We’re excited to get these guys on board,” Forsaith said.

Another aspect the department wants to highlight is that three of the four newcomers are women, which brings the department to 26% female, well above the 5% national average.

Forsaith said there isn’t a specific formula for why Amherst has been successful — beating the national average and possibly achieving the highest rate in the state — but it is likely because there is a commitment in the department leadership that is supported by town officials.

“This is the most diverse, highly educated and ambitious department I know,” Forsaith said.

“We try to make a conscious effort to be diverse. We have a reputation for being open and welcoming,” Stronmgren said. “Our practices get us there.”

Those who work for the department must meet certain physical fitness conditions, and there is encouragement to stay in shape.

But Amherst still faces the same issues as other departments across the state with a shortage of personnel, which is why basic EMTs are hired who can train for Advanced Life Support skills.

“Ultimately, everybody has to become a paramedic,” Stromgren said.

Amherst’s student force, Forsaith said, has been great, as the members already understand the intricacies and what she characterizes as a “three-year job interview.”

“They have a leg up,” Forsaith said, observing there were about six or seven applicants for the positions. “We were very lucky to have three student force kids, and Emma, who came over from Hadley.”

At some point, each will go to the fire academy. Whether there will be additional financial support is uncertain. Stromgren said he has applied for a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) federal grant to help fund positions and advocated for state legislation that would assess fees to students living in dormitories at state schools and public universities.

The Amherst Fire Department worked with the Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts on this initiative to add more staff.

“That would increase safety for any students going to college,” Forsaith said.