SALIDA FIRE DEPARTMENT
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CALL FOR DUTY
December 5, 2017 Southern California Fires force thousands to evacuate as fires cause great destruction. Firefighters are being called for duty as the fires quickly spread. Four Salida Firefighters have answered the call, Modesto has also answered the call for help, we are asking the community to please pray for the safety of all the Firefighters as the fires are quickly growing causing tens of thousands to evacuate. Salida Firefighters that have answered the call are Captain John Alberti, Engineer Pat Burns, Zachary Hyer and Brian Birdsong. Please keep them all in our thoughts and prayers, we wish you all a safe travels. |
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Chief Vernon Losh Praises Firefighters
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DEPLETING RESERVES
November 16, 2017
Salida Fire District is pulling $ from their reserves already to survive. To hire a new Fire Chief will pull an additional $165,000 from the reserves. Dale Skiles was approved lifetime medical from the board which will be an additional $15,000 a year if the final approval goes through, Dale will have to request it from the Salida Fire Protection District once he is retired, Salida Fire cannot survive within their own budget they will not be able to afford more expense.
The board may have to decrease their level of service they sustain now. If the level of service drops that's CRAZY!!! We have the lowest service level in the county already. 43 square miles and only two firefighters. It would not be safe to only have one firefighter answer a call, which is against the law. Two must be available.
Volunteers don't always answer to the call. Most have full time jobs.
In order for a volunteer to retain their volunteer status they are required by law to meet the same training and medical clearance standards as a paid employee.This is for both the communities safety and theirs as well as the liability to the district itself. Always remember these are people who take the same risks, performing the same job, as those Firefighters who were lucky enough to be able to make a career of. It takes a lot of District money to train volunteers and to keep them up on their standards. When the District trains 15 volunteers each time they take on volunteers and the District is only able to retain 6 to 8 volunteers, most are farmers and during harvest have a difficult time responding or they have a full time job that does not allow them to leave work, we still end up depending on mutual aid. Salida Fire is then in return required to return the favor leaving us vulnerable.
Chief Alberti had spoke up at the meeting tonight asking the Salida Fire Protection Board to not spend $12,000 on consulting firm, asking the board to call other departments first, such as Wooland Fire and Ripon Fire. Informing the board that the Firefighters delayed the $12,000 job to fix their sewer at Station 12 due to finances. The Salida Fire Board decided against the delay and voted to hire the consulting firm.
Last August 5th, there was a box truck fire and a 2nd call came in for a non-responsive individual on Kiernan Ave west of the Railroad tracks There was no volunteers available to respond, the fire chief at the time did not call for mutual aid but decided to answer the call all the way from Oakdale rd and Sylvan ave. That's unacceptable! The Chief did not call for mutual aid.
November 16, 2017
Salida Fire District is pulling $ from their reserves already to survive. To hire a new Fire Chief will pull an additional $165,000 from the reserves. Dale Skiles was approved lifetime medical from the board which will be an additional $15,000 a year if the final approval goes through, Dale will have to request it from the Salida Fire Protection District once he is retired, Salida Fire cannot survive within their own budget they will not be able to afford more expense.
The board may have to decrease their level of service they sustain now. If the level of service drops that's CRAZY!!! We have the lowest service level in the county already. 43 square miles and only two firefighters. It would not be safe to only have one firefighter answer a call, which is against the law. Two must be available.
Volunteers don't always answer to the call. Most have full time jobs.
In order for a volunteer to retain their volunteer status they are required by law to meet the same training and medical clearance standards as a paid employee.This is for both the communities safety and theirs as well as the liability to the district itself. Always remember these are people who take the same risks, performing the same job, as those Firefighters who were lucky enough to be able to make a career of. It takes a lot of District money to train volunteers and to keep them up on their standards. When the District trains 15 volunteers each time they take on volunteers and the District is only able to retain 6 to 8 volunteers, most are farmers and during harvest have a difficult time responding or they have a full time job that does not allow them to leave work, we still end up depending on mutual aid. Salida Fire is then in return required to return the favor leaving us vulnerable.
Chief Alberti had spoke up at the meeting tonight asking the Salida Fire Protection Board to not spend $12,000 on consulting firm, asking the board to call other departments first, such as Wooland Fire and Ripon Fire. Informing the board that the Firefighters delayed the $12,000 job to fix their sewer at Station 12 due to finances. The Salida Fire Board decided against the delay and voted to hire the consulting firm.
Last August 5th, there was a box truck fire and a 2nd call came in for a non-responsive individual on Kiernan Ave west of the Railroad tracks There was no volunteers available to respond, the fire chief at the time did not call for mutual aid but decided to answer the call all the way from Oakdale rd and Sylvan ave. That's unacceptable! The Chief did not call for mutual aid.
HISTORY MADE
November 16, 2017
We've been to several Salida Fire Board meetings and this was the first meeting where the board recognized the wonderful job the firefighters have done and mentioned an incident where a vehicle went across six lanes and hit a tractor. The person was pinned in and how the firefighters worked efficiently and with professionalism. That was wonderful to hear. That was Beautiful. All this was said by the interim Chief Vernon Losh.
Great Job Salida Firefighters!
We've always been very proud of our Firefighters! Yes that includes all the volunteers too.
November 16, 2017
We've been to several Salida Fire Board meetings and this was the first meeting where the board recognized the wonderful job the firefighters have done and mentioned an incident where a vehicle went across six lanes and hit a tractor. The person was pinned in and how the firefighters worked efficiently and with professionalism. That was wonderful to hear. That was Beautiful. All this was said by the interim Chief Vernon Losh.
Great Job Salida Firefighters!
We've always been very proud of our Firefighters! Yes that includes all the volunteers too.
Salida Fire
May 28, 2016
Emergency crews arrived on scene for a person that had unknown medical issues thanks to the people at the new Barber shop for showing their concern and calling it in.
May 28, 2016
Emergency crews arrived on scene for a person that had unknown medical issues thanks to the people at the new Barber shop for showing their concern and calling it in.
Salida Fire Department
9/11 Ceremony presented by Fire Captian Joe Rizotto, Salida
SEPTEMBER 11, 2015
What a wonderful Ceremony, I'm so honored to have been able to be there to witness our Salida Fire District remember the fallen on that sad day, September 11, 2001.
"WE WILL NEVER FORGET"
SEPTEMBER 11, 2015
What a wonderful Ceremony, I'm so honored to have been able to be there to witness our Salida Fire District remember the fallen on that sad day, September 11, 2001.
"WE WILL NEVER FORGET"
Assessment FAILED! 52-48%
June 18, 2015
Everyone can look forward to having Ladd station staffed 6 months and we sit empty depending on Ladd station for help.
Then 6 months out of the year Ciccarelli station will be staffed covering the whole district.
Hope we will be ok with all the distance between Salida and the Ladd station.
SALIDA FIRE VOTING ASSESSMENT
June, 17, 2015
Today, June 17th was the deadline to vote on funding more firefighters for the District.
Right now Salida Fire District covers 42 square miles, from McHenry Ave to the San Joaquin river, all the way to the West to the river and over to Shoemake Ave.
There are two paid staff firefighters at this time. If the ballot passes that would provide the area with two more paid firefighters to cover the district.
Salida fire station on Salida Blvd is being used as the central location at this time but will not be in service in the future. The building is very old and needs lots of updates to keep open.
There are two other fire department locations in the district that will be utilized. Ciccarelli Rd and Ladd Rd.
If the ballot passes both stations will be staffed with two paid staff year around. If the ballot does not pass both stations will be staffed six months out of the year and will alternate between the both of them.
As soon as we hear the outcome of the voting we will let everyone know.
The ballots were turned over to Capitol PPG that was hired to verify and count all ballots. They are an independent party that will verify every signature to make sure there is no fraud involved.
Stay tuned for updates.
June 18, 2015
Everyone can look forward to having Ladd station staffed 6 months and we sit empty depending on Ladd station for help.
Then 6 months out of the year Ciccarelli station will be staffed covering the whole district.
Hope we will be ok with all the distance between Salida and the Ladd station.
SALIDA FIRE VOTING ASSESSMENT
June, 17, 2015
Today, June 17th was the deadline to vote on funding more firefighters for the District.
Right now Salida Fire District covers 42 square miles, from McHenry Ave to the San Joaquin river, all the way to the West to the river and over to Shoemake Ave.
There are two paid staff firefighters at this time. If the ballot passes that would provide the area with two more paid firefighters to cover the district.
Salida fire station on Salida Blvd is being used as the central location at this time but will not be in service in the future. The building is very old and needs lots of updates to keep open.
There are two other fire department locations in the district that will be utilized. Ciccarelli Rd and Ladd Rd.
If the ballot passes both stations will be staffed with two paid staff year around. If the ballot does not pass both stations will be staffed six months out of the year and will alternate between the both of them.
As soon as we hear the outcome of the voting we will let everyone know.
The ballots were turned over to Capitol PPG that was hired to verify and count all ballots. They are an independent party that will verify every signature to make sure there is no fraud involved.
Stay tuned for updates.
FIRE ASSESSMENT Q&A
Q. As a home owner how much do I pay towards fire protection now and how much will it go up if I vote yes?
A. Home owners in SFD district is paying $3.75 a month and if a yes vote was to pass you will be paying $13.05 a month.
Q. Did Salida firefighters get a raise when they merged with MRFA (Modesto Regional Firefighters Association)?
A. Yes. Salida but the Salida residents did not contribute to the increase, Modesto and their IAFF union did. Now that MRFA dissolved paycuts have taken place. Not all firefighters stayed with Salida Fire Department due to pay cuts.
Q. When Salida was with MRFA didn’t they have a fire station staffed with 3 firefighters?
A. Yes, that was MRFA standards and Salida taxes were not increased due to the increase in coverage, the money came from Modesto not Salida, Del Rio or Wood Colony.
Q. Why isn’t Del Rio covered by the Pelandale station? Del Rio has a Modesto address so why aren’t they covered by Modesto Fire?
A. Modesto Fire covers the city of Modesto residents. Del Rio is County and their taxes goes towards the county fire. When Salida was with MRFA the Pelandale fire station did cover Del Rio but now we are no longer with MRFA so Modesto does not respond unless mutual aid is requested.
Q. Wasn’t the firestation on Ladd and Tully staffed prior to the merger with MRFA? If yes, then why isn’t it staffed now?
A. Yes it was staffed with a captain and 1 engineer for 7 years Monday-Friday 7-4. If the MRFA merger was not an option, those positions were going to be CUT Within 2 years because....the cost to staff that station and the income the fire district received had drastically fallen off due to the economy
Q. I live in Del Rio and I pay the same taxes as everyone else in the district. How is it fair that my response time is much longer than those in Salida, we are all covered by the same fire district. What is the best way we can even this out for all of us?
A. There are only two ways to remedy this situation. One is to pass the fire assessment so both fire stations can be staffed. The only other way to even this out is to rotate fire stations. 6 months out of the year Ladd and Tully can be staffed with 2 firefighters and the other 6 months out of the year the station on Salida Blvd can be staffed. 6 months out of the year Del Rio can have a response time of 9-11 minutes and 6 months out of the year Salida and Wood Colony can have the response time of 9-11 minutes.
Q. If my house was to catch fire will the firefighters be able to fight the fire if we vote no on the fire assessment?
A. If there are only 2 firefighters staffed at the time they will not be able to enter your residents unless a life is threatened. To fight a fire without a life being threatened they will not be able to fight the fire by entering the residents. They would only be able to fight the fire from outside. In order for a fire to be fought by entering the residents is to have 4 staffed firefighters. OSHA requires 2 in and 2 out for safety reasons. If something happens to the fire fighters in the residents there is still 2 firefighters to help save them.
Q. Would our insurance rates go up if the fire assessment does not pass, considering our firefighters may end up at the Ladd and Tully station for six months out of the year causing our response times to be effected? Plus how much can that affect my insurance and would the savings of a no vote outweigh the possible rise in my insurance rates?
A. Yes, it is called an ISO rating and since our fire department would be located on Ladd and Tully Rd for up to 6 months of the year Salida residents ISO rating would go from a 4 rating to an 8 rating causing your fire insurance to go up approximately $50 to $60 a year depending on your insurance coverage. This was based on an insurance company with a $5,000 deductible. You should contact your insurance company to find out your actual increase.
Q. As a home owner how much do I pay towards fire protection now and how much will it go up if I vote yes?
A. Home owners in SFD district is paying $3.75 a month and if a yes vote was to pass you will be paying $13.05 a month.
Q. Did Salida firefighters get a raise when they merged with MRFA (Modesto Regional Firefighters Association)?
A. Yes. Salida but the Salida residents did not contribute to the increase, Modesto and their IAFF union did. Now that MRFA dissolved paycuts have taken place. Not all firefighters stayed with Salida Fire Department due to pay cuts.
Q. When Salida was with MRFA didn’t they have a fire station staffed with 3 firefighters?
A. Yes, that was MRFA standards and Salida taxes were not increased due to the increase in coverage, the money came from Modesto not Salida, Del Rio or Wood Colony.
Q. Why isn’t Del Rio covered by the Pelandale station? Del Rio has a Modesto address so why aren’t they covered by Modesto Fire?
A. Modesto Fire covers the city of Modesto residents. Del Rio is County and their taxes goes towards the county fire. When Salida was with MRFA the Pelandale fire station did cover Del Rio but now we are no longer with MRFA so Modesto does not respond unless mutual aid is requested.
Q. Wasn’t the firestation on Ladd and Tully staffed prior to the merger with MRFA? If yes, then why isn’t it staffed now?
A. Yes it was staffed with a captain and 1 engineer for 7 years Monday-Friday 7-4. If the MRFA merger was not an option, those positions were going to be CUT Within 2 years because....the cost to staff that station and the income the fire district received had drastically fallen off due to the economy
Q. I live in Del Rio and I pay the same taxes as everyone else in the district. How is it fair that my response time is much longer than those in Salida, we are all covered by the same fire district. What is the best way we can even this out for all of us?
A. There are only two ways to remedy this situation. One is to pass the fire assessment so both fire stations can be staffed. The only other way to even this out is to rotate fire stations. 6 months out of the year Ladd and Tully can be staffed with 2 firefighters and the other 6 months out of the year the station on Salida Blvd can be staffed. 6 months out of the year Del Rio can have a response time of 9-11 minutes and 6 months out of the year Salida and Wood Colony can have the response time of 9-11 minutes.
Q. If my house was to catch fire will the firefighters be able to fight the fire if we vote no on the fire assessment?
A. If there are only 2 firefighters staffed at the time they will not be able to enter your residents unless a life is threatened. To fight a fire without a life being threatened they will not be able to fight the fire by entering the residents. They would only be able to fight the fire from outside. In order for a fire to be fought by entering the residents is to have 4 staffed firefighters. OSHA requires 2 in and 2 out for safety reasons. If something happens to the fire fighters in the residents there is still 2 firefighters to help save them.
Q. Would our insurance rates go up if the fire assessment does not pass, considering our firefighters may end up at the Ladd and Tully station for six months out of the year causing our response times to be effected? Plus how much can that affect my insurance and would the savings of a no vote outweigh the possible rise in my insurance rates?
A. Yes, it is called an ISO rating and since our fire department would be located on Ladd and Tully Rd for up to 6 months of the year Salida residents ISO rating would go from a 4 rating to an 8 rating causing your fire insurance to go up approximately $50 to $60 a year depending on your insurance coverage. This was based on an insurance company with a $5,000 deductible. You should contact your insurance company to find out your actual increase.
Fire Assessment
Update:
One meeting left to attend where you can ask questions and get answers on the fire assessment. Katherine Borges will give a power point presentation. We strongly suggest you attend the meeting and clear up any misunderstandings you may have.
There's a lot of misinformation about the fire assessment flying around. If you have questions and concerns we strongly suggest you attend at least one of the three public meetings.
1st meeting will be held at 1330 Ladd Rd firestation Wednesday May 13th at 7:00 pm
2nd meeting will be located at 4820 Salida Blvd firestation Saturday May 16th at 1:00 pm
3rd meeting will be held at the Library on Sisk Rd Tuesday May 26th at 7:00 pm.
This will be held during the regular scheduled Salida MAC meeting.
Don't worry, even if you have already voted and sent in your ballot you will be able to change your vote. It's not too late to change it. Please attend the meetings and find out the details and discard all misinformation that is being spread around.
Feel free to contact the fire department at 545-0365. They will be happy to talk to you.
Update:
One meeting left to attend where you can ask questions and get answers on the fire assessment. Katherine Borges will give a power point presentation. We strongly suggest you attend the meeting and clear up any misunderstandings you may have.
There's a lot of misinformation about the fire assessment flying around. If you have questions and concerns we strongly suggest you attend at least one of the three public meetings.
1st meeting will be held at 1330 Ladd Rd firestation Wednesday May 13th at 7:00 pm
2nd meeting will be located at 4820 Salida Blvd firestation Saturday May 16th at 1:00 pm
3rd meeting will be held at the Library on Sisk Rd Tuesday May 26th at 7:00 pm.
This will be held during the regular scheduled Salida MAC meeting.
Don't worry, even if you have already voted and sent in your ballot you will be able to change your vote. It's not too late to change it. Please attend the meetings and find out the details and discard all misinformation that is being spread around.
Feel free to contact the fire department at 545-0365. They will be happy to talk to you.
Salida Fire District
Written by Tom Burns
May 2, 2015
The Salida Fire District is an independent special district, which operates on its own, through a Board of Directors elected by the residents of the District. Its primary revenue sources are property tax (the district gets approximately 1/10 of 1% of the property taxes collected in the district), and the benefit assessment. The assessment has been in place, and unchanged since 1990. The district has been very careful with your money, and continues to provide the highest level of service within its income. The fact is that the operating expenses have outpaced income, and it is time for an increase to support the level of service the majority of people in the district want.
The economic downturn that began in 2008 further eroded the district's income, as the value of property decreased. Expenses, however, did not decrease -- just look at how the price of fuel has increased since then. Additionally, new training and equipment mandates by the state and federal governments, have caused operating costs to increase, and have increased the time demands on volunteer firefighters. For example, California requires over 240 hours of training every year for firefighters -- that's 20 hours per month for training alone. The breathing apparatus required to fight structure fires expires every 15 years by law. Those were replaced last year at a cost of over $180,000. Fire engines now cost well over $500,000 each, without equipment.
After the recession started, and the last attempt to raise the assessment failed, Salida partnered with the County and Modesto to form MRFA. The governance model, approved by all 3 agencies, called for reach agency to have one representative on the Board of Directors, with equal votes. Salida committed its full time personnel (it had 10 at the time) and assets to the regional approach. Over the 3 years of operation (2011 - 2014), MRFA proved the regional concept could work. Despite Modesto cutting over $4,000,000 from MRFA during that time, careful planning and spending by MRFA resulted in an additional savings of over $2,000,000 by the time MRFA was dissolved in 2014. The savings came from not filling some vacancies caused by retirements, and by eliminating duplication in command structure. Additionally, 3 of Salida's engines were used in MRFA stations within the city (station 11, station 9 & station 10), which saved MRFA the cost of new engines.
After MRFA was formed, we learned that the city, despite representations to the contrary, did not own its fire stations - they were all mortgaged to secure loans to keep the city afloat over the years. It also became clear that the city saw MRFA as a way to raid the financial reserves that Salida had built up in order to afford to maintain and replace its equipment on a 20-year schedule. Modesto had deferred maintenance at its stations and on its equipment, much of which badly needed to be replaced.
While the County and Salida honored their commitments to fund MRFA, the city cut its funding every year. In 2014, then city manager, Greg Nyhoff, made it clear that the city "wanted its fire department back" and wanted to take full control of MRFA. Doing so would not have been in the best interest of the county or Salida, so both agreed to honor Modesto's request to dissolve MRFA. MRFA did not "fail" but was purposefully dissolved at the request of Modesto, one of the three partners.
When MRFA was formed, the Salida volunteers had the option of continuing to volunteer as Reserves for MRFA (several stayed and volunteered hundreds of hours over three years, and gained valuable experience), however, since they would be required to work in stations on set shifts, rather than simply responding to calls, many of the volunteers opted to leave. Most of the Modesto firefighters, and the union, welcomed the reserves; it was the City Manager and City Council that were problematic.
After the MRFA dissolution, many of Salida's volunteers have returned. Salida is in the process of recruiting an additional 20 volunteers. While not paid for their time, volunteers still cost the district money: personal protective clothing, required by law, costs in excess of $7,000 per person, and has a finite lifetime, meaning it must be replaced periodically. The district is required to provide workers compensation insurance for the volunteers, and must pay for annual medical exams for each person.
Fewer people work where they live; this is especially true in Salida. That means that during large parts of the day, many of those volunteers are not available for calls. The call volume has historically been around 1,400 calls per year, with approximately 40% in station 2's area (east of Stoddard Rd), while 60% are in station 1's area. More and more frequently, the calls come in while the one crew is on another call. With only one engine staffed, the rest of the district is uncovered while the engine is on a call. If volunteers are available and in town, they respond to calls, but that takes additional time for them to reach the station to take an engine, or even to respond directly to a call if appropriate. Other districts in the county, notably Burbank Paradise, pay their volunteers when they are at the station; Salida traditionally has not.
Medical calls account for around 75% of all calls. In a heart attack situation, seconds count. The crew can easily be tied up over an hour on a medical call, especially if a firefighter has to ride to the hospital with the ambulance as happens in serious cases. For fire calls, the law prohibits firefighters from entering a burning building to fight the fire unless they have a minimum of 2 firefighters to go in and a minimum of 2 that stay outside as a rescue crew in the event of an emergency inside. With only one engine staffed, fire suppression activity will be delayed. A second staffed engine will provide better depth to handle multiple simultaneous calls (something that happens with surprising frequency), and to respond more quickly to fires.
The protection of my family and the home I have worked very hard to afford is well worth what amounts to a little over $13 per month that the new assessment would cost. The assessment income remains local within the district, and can only be used to support the fire district. I'm voting Yes, and would encourage every property owner in Salida to do likewise.
Written by Tom Burns
May 2, 2015
The Salida Fire District is an independent special district, which operates on its own, through a Board of Directors elected by the residents of the District. Its primary revenue sources are property tax (the district gets approximately 1/10 of 1% of the property taxes collected in the district), and the benefit assessment. The assessment has been in place, and unchanged since 1990. The district has been very careful with your money, and continues to provide the highest level of service within its income. The fact is that the operating expenses have outpaced income, and it is time for an increase to support the level of service the majority of people in the district want.
The economic downturn that began in 2008 further eroded the district's income, as the value of property decreased. Expenses, however, did not decrease -- just look at how the price of fuel has increased since then. Additionally, new training and equipment mandates by the state and federal governments, have caused operating costs to increase, and have increased the time demands on volunteer firefighters. For example, California requires over 240 hours of training every year for firefighters -- that's 20 hours per month for training alone. The breathing apparatus required to fight structure fires expires every 15 years by law. Those were replaced last year at a cost of over $180,000. Fire engines now cost well over $500,000 each, without equipment.
After the recession started, and the last attempt to raise the assessment failed, Salida partnered with the County and Modesto to form MRFA. The governance model, approved by all 3 agencies, called for reach agency to have one representative on the Board of Directors, with equal votes. Salida committed its full time personnel (it had 10 at the time) and assets to the regional approach. Over the 3 years of operation (2011 - 2014), MRFA proved the regional concept could work. Despite Modesto cutting over $4,000,000 from MRFA during that time, careful planning and spending by MRFA resulted in an additional savings of over $2,000,000 by the time MRFA was dissolved in 2014. The savings came from not filling some vacancies caused by retirements, and by eliminating duplication in command structure. Additionally, 3 of Salida's engines were used in MRFA stations within the city (station 11, station 9 & station 10), which saved MRFA the cost of new engines.
After MRFA was formed, we learned that the city, despite representations to the contrary, did not own its fire stations - they were all mortgaged to secure loans to keep the city afloat over the years. It also became clear that the city saw MRFA as a way to raid the financial reserves that Salida had built up in order to afford to maintain and replace its equipment on a 20-year schedule. Modesto had deferred maintenance at its stations and on its equipment, much of which badly needed to be replaced.
While the County and Salida honored their commitments to fund MRFA, the city cut its funding every year. In 2014, then city manager, Greg Nyhoff, made it clear that the city "wanted its fire department back" and wanted to take full control of MRFA. Doing so would not have been in the best interest of the county or Salida, so both agreed to honor Modesto's request to dissolve MRFA. MRFA did not "fail" but was purposefully dissolved at the request of Modesto, one of the three partners.
When MRFA was formed, the Salida volunteers had the option of continuing to volunteer as Reserves for MRFA (several stayed and volunteered hundreds of hours over three years, and gained valuable experience), however, since they would be required to work in stations on set shifts, rather than simply responding to calls, many of the volunteers opted to leave. Most of the Modesto firefighters, and the union, welcomed the reserves; it was the City Manager and City Council that were problematic.
After the MRFA dissolution, many of Salida's volunteers have returned. Salida is in the process of recruiting an additional 20 volunteers. While not paid for their time, volunteers still cost the district money: personal protective clothing, required by law, costs in excess of $7,000 per person, and has a finite lifetime, meaning it must be replaced periodically. The district is required to provide workers compensation insurance for the volunteers, and must pay for annual medical exams for each person.
Fewer people work where they live; this is especially true in Salida. That means that during large parts of the day, many of those volunteers are not available for calls. The call volume has historically been around 1,400 calls per year, with approximately 40% in station 2's area (east of Stoddard Rd), while 60% are in station 1's area. More and more frequently, the calls come in while the one crew is on another call. With only one engine staffed, the rest of the district is uncovered while the engine is on a call. If volunteers are available and in town, they respond to calls, but that takes additional time for them to reach the station to take an engine, or even to respond directly to a call if appropriate. Other districts in the county, notably Burbank Paradise, pay their volunteers when they are at the station; Salida traditionally has not.
Medical calls account for around 75% of all calls. In a heart attack situation, seconds count. The crew can easily be tied up over an hour on a medical call, especially if a firefighter has to ride to the hospital with the ambulance as happens in serious cases. For fire calls, the law prohibits firefighters from entering a burning building to fight the fire unless they have a minimum of 2 firefighters to go in and a minimum of 2 that stay outside as a rescue crew in the event of an emergency inside. With only one engine staffed, fire suppression activity will be delayed. A second staffed engine will provide better depth to handle multiple simultaneous calls (something that happens with surprising frequency), and to respond more quickly to fires.
The protection of my family and the home I have worked very hard to afford is well worth what amounts to a little over $13 per month that the new assessment would cost. The assessment income remains local within the district, and can only be used to support the fire district. I'm voting Yes, and would encourage every property owner in Salida to do likewise.
Salida, Del Rio and Wood Colony
What do you want or expect from our local Fire Department?
March 26, 2015
Fire Chief Dale Skiles asks for your input on what you want from our Local Fire Department. There will be a work shop on April 2nd at 7:00 pm at the fire station on Broadway and and Salida Blvd and this will be the place to let your voice be heard.
Public education has been increased lately to inform the public on what they do. Feel free to stop by the fire station someone will be happy to show you around and show you what they do. The Salida Fire District averages about 120 calls a month which covers Del Rio, Salida and the Wood Colony area. There are always two firefighters on duty at all times. They do receive overlapping calls and there seems to be no rhyme or reason for them. They will not receive calls for hours then all of a sudden they will receive a call and while on that call they will receive another which makes it difficult for them. Depending on the call and the level of emergency they have difficulty responding to the 2nd call, they usually have to call in a reserve volunteer that will then have to leave their house or place of business arrive at the fire station grab the engine and drive to the call.
There will be a special election this year on the support our local Fire Department needs. Only land owners will be able to vote. If you are a renter and you would like to help support our local fire department please watch the videos below and let your landlord know how important it is to you and your family.
Feel free to attend the workshop set up for April 2nd at 7:00 pm at the Fire Department on Broadway and Salida Blvd.
The Fire Department want to hear from the public on what types of coverage they not only expect from the fire department but what you as the public want from the Fire Department.
Please watch the following videos, there is a lot of information in just a short period of time.
What do you want or expect from our local Fire Department?
March 26, 2015
Fire Chief Dale Skiles asks for your input on what you want from our Local Fire Department. There will be a work shop on April 2nd at 7:00 pm at the fire station on Broadway and and Salida Blvd and this will be the place to let your voice be heard.
Public education has been increased lately to inform the public on what they do. Feel free to stop by the fire station someone will be happy to show you around and show you what they do. The Salida Fire District averages about 120 calls a month which covers Del Rio, Salida and the Wood Colony area. There are always two firefighters on duty at all times. They do receive overlapping calls and there seems to be no rhyme or reason for them. They will not receive calls for hours then all of a sudden they will receive a call and while on that call they will receive another which makes it difficult for them. Depending on the call and the level of emergency they have difficulty responding to the 2nd call, they usually have to call in a reserve volunteer that will then have to leave their house or place of business arrive at the fire station grab the engine and drive to the call.
There will be a special election this year on the support our local Fire Department needs. Only land owners will be able to vote. If you are a renter and you would like to help support our local fire department please watch the videos below and let your landlord know how important it is to you and your family.
Feel free to attend the workshop set up for April 2nd at 7:00 pm at the Fire Department on Broadway and Salida Blvd.
The Fire Department want to hear from the public on what types of coverage they not only expect from the fire department but what you as the public want from the Fire Department.
Please watch the following videos, there is a lot of information in just a short period of time.
SALIDA FIREFIGHTERS
Salidacanews went on a ride along with the Salida Fire Department on March 7, 2015,
While there were not many calls that day (which is good) the Firefighters did keep busy doing training maneuvers.
We observed volunteers in training with all their gear on, maneuvering through tight spots. Only experience will get you through a tough spot and that takes practice and lots of training. Watch as Troy Flora (Volunteer) works his way through this training exercise.
Stay tuned for more videos and stories of our very own Salida Fire Department.
Salidacanews went on a ride along with the Salida Fire Department on March 7, 2015,
While there were not many calls that day (which is good) the Firefighters did keep busy doing training maneuvers.
We observed volunteers in training with all their gear on, maneuvering through tight spots. Only experience will get you through a tough spot and that takes practice and lots of training. Watch as Troy Flora (Volunteer) works his way through this training exercise.
Stay tuned for more videos and stories of our very own Salida Fire Department.
Salida Firefighters
March 7, 2015
Spending a day with the Salida Fire Department is and experience that will last a lifetime.
Our day started off with clean up, pulling all the engines out of the bay spraying down the floors with water, mopping them and then squeegeeing them. Once the trucks are out they are all checked to make sure they are in proper working condition, Checking pumps, hydraulics, gauges all all the engines fluids are up and clean.
After all the equipment has been checked, floors clean, now we move on to training. As you see the photo on the left this is their air tanks and breathing apparatus, Gary Skiles sitting on the left is running through training to make sure everything is covered. On the left (back to front) we have Alberto Ortega (Transferred from CalFire), Steve Brush (8 year veteran) and Troy Flora (Volunteer). Steve Brush is conducting the training on the use of the equipment and getting them familiar for today's training exercises.
Training exercises consists of crawling though tight spaces with all their gear on, changing their breathing hoses while they are blindfolded, scenarios that happens while they are in a smoke filled rooms. Tethering breathing hoses while blindfolded in case one of the firefighters run out of air they are able to share.
Later we drove to a simulated house fire, where they practiced dragging out the hose, hooking it up, filling the hose and going around a building on their knees while two work in tandem. The third person is hooking up the water to the engine so they are able to keep dousing the fire. Their engine carries 500 gallons of water and they will need to keep the water coming if there is a big fire.
Later we did receive a medical call for an elderly male, as we arrived on scene the ambulance had already arrived. The Firemen and the Paramedics worked together helping the elderly male when another call came in but was cancelled just after two blocks of heading to the scene. It was a false alarm.
The day was ended as the men sat down to eat dinner they had to stop eating for they were called to a residents where someone had fallen and the family were unable to lift them and needed assistance. The calls they the Firemen like, they are happy to help someone where the outcome is no one was injured and everyone is happy at the end of the call.
We would like to give a GREAT BIG THANKS to all the individuals that were there and allowed us to ride along. Their days are full even when there are no calls. They are always our there practicing and running drills for scenarios to help save our lives when the time comes when we need their assistance.
March 7, 2015
Spending a day with the Salida Fire Department is and experience that will last a lifetime.
Our day started off with clean up, pulling all the engines out of the bay spraying down the floors with water, mopping them and then squeegeeing them. Once the trucks are out they are all checked to make sure they are in proper working condition, Checking pumps, hydraulics, gauges all all the engines fluids are up and clean.
After all the equipment has been checked, floors clean, now we move on to training. As you see the photo on the left this is their air tanks and breathing apparatus, Gary Skiles sitting on the left is running through training to make sure everything is covered. On the left (back to front) we have Alberto Ortega (Transferred from CalFire), Steve Brush (8 year veteran) and Troy Flora (Volunteer). Steve Brush is conducting the training on the use of the equipment and getting them familiar for today's training exercises.
Training exercises consists of crawling though tight spaces with all their gear on, changing their breathing hoses while they are blindfolded, scenarios that happens while they are in a smoke filled rooms. Tethering breathing hoses while blindfolded in case one of the firefighters run out of air they are able to share.
Later we drove to a simulated house fire, where they practiced dragging out the hose, hooking it up, filling the hose and going around a building on their knees while two work in tandem. The third person is hooking up the water to the engine so they are able to keep dousing the fire. Their engine carries 500 gallons of water and they will need to keep the water coming if there is a big fire.
Later we did receive a medical call for an elderly male, as we arrived on scene the ambulance had already arrived. The Firemen and the Paramedics worked together helping the elderly male when another call came in but was cancelled just after two blocks of heading to the scene. It was a false alarm.
The day was ended as the men sat down to eat dinner they had to stop eating for they were called to a residents where someone had fallen and the family were unable to lift them and needed assistance. The calls they the Firemen like, they are happy to help someone where the outcome is no one was injured and everyone is happy at the end of the call.
We would like to give a GREAT BIG THANKS to all the individuals that were there and allowed us to ride along. Their days are full even when there are no calls. They are always our there practicing and running drills for scenarios to help save our lives when the time comes when we need their assistance.