NORWAY – Selectmen were told Thursday night that daytime staffing shortages at the Norway, Paris and Oxford fire departments should be addressed regionally.

“We just don’t have the manpower,” said fire Chief Mike Mann, who along with deputy Chief Dennis Yates presented selectmen with a regional report on manpower and staffing shortages at the towns’ stations weekdays from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

In the report, Yates and Mann said the two most important factors regarding emergencies are response time and adequate staffing.

Selectmen were presented with several staffing scenarios for the towns, ranging from each paying as little as $62,400 a year for two firefighters per town on 10-hour shifts five days a week to a high of $112,320 annually for three firefighters per town on 12-hour shifts, five days a week.

“There is zero likelihood of finding money this year for it without laying off people,” Town Manger David Holt said.

Despite the lack of funds, selectmen gave the go-ahead to fire officials to look into the federal Staffing For Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant program as a means of improving manpower for the departments.

The grant program could provide up to $100,000 for four of the five-year grant cycle, with the towns responsible for some costs.

According to the report, all three towns have been seeing more fire calls, including Norway, which responded to 259 calls last year. Oxford responded to 292 and Paris 302 calls. Paris had the highest increase of calls over previous years, 57 more than in 2007.

A total of 73 percent of the calls were during the daytime hours of 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. and in the last four years, manpower availability has decreased by 49 percent during the daytime hours, according to the report.

The report said most members of the department have an average 40-minute commute to and from work. While Norway and Paris have not reached a staffing crisis, Oxford has put daytime responders in place to meet needs.

Because a structure fire requires between 13 and 21 firefighters, fire officials say it is impossible for the towns to quickly assemble enough firefighters to stage and aggressively attack a blaze.

“We’ve got to get the three towns together. You’ve got to get a commitment to work toward a goal,” Mann said. “The three towns have got to work together or it just won’t work out.”

“The question is how much can we afford,” Selectman Russ Newcomb said.