Tim Darland, Fire Chief
As the Fire Chief, I have the privilege and honor of leading a highly trained and competent crew who serve as volunteers on the High Prairie Fire Department (HPFD). In compiling 2016 run reports and training rosters, I am always amazed at how many hours our firefighters provide to the community. In addition to firefighters volunteering in our community, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the High Prairie Community Council members and how they have provided service to the fire department over the last year.
To recap 2016 HPFD activities: Members responded to a total of 91 emergency calls this last year. Medical emergencies were the majority of our responses, totaling 41. Vegetation fires were second at 19 responses, followed by 13 motor vehicle accidents and 5 structure fires. There were a number of “good intent calls” in which our firefighters were asked to stand down as other departments maintained control of their emergency scene.
To calculate the value of service we take the number of hours spent on emergency responses and training/maintenance activities and multiply it by the total personnel time on each activity. HPFD MEMBERS VOLUNTEERED A TOTAL OF 1,954 HOURS! Then we multiply the number of volunteer hours by $23.00, the average emergency services hourly wage (Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2013) THE VALUE OF SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY IN 2016 TOTALED $45,000. Our collected tax revenue for HPFD in 2016 was approximately $38,000. Money well spent! What is not represented in this total value of service is the time spent by our Fire Commissioners. Each year they sign a waiver not to get paid for their time serving in their elected positions which keeps more dollars in the budget for gear and safety equipment. Thank you, Commissioners, for your support to the department and the community.
HPFD has gone through some changes this last year. Here are some highlights. HPCC received a Legends casino grant for $4,000 which went to purchase portable radios for the department. Glenna Scott has joined the HPFD in June as our department secretary. Great to have her on-board! We received a $4,800 grant from Washington DNR to put a foam injection system on Brush Truck 1422. We had corrected a three year backlog of annual audits. HPCC had donated $5,000 to purchase new turnouts for 2 firefighters with the proceeds from the annual High Prairie Firehouse Sale. I personally want to thank HPCC for the time and commitment it took by community members to ensure the Firehouse Sale happens. Two new officers (Lieutenants) were nominated to the Fire Chief by department members. Congratulations to Tom McMackin and Dave Thom! And, not that this is a highlight as he will be missed: Firefighter Rob Taylor is retiring from the department with 10 years of service! Please help celebrate Rob’s retirement at the annual fire department awards dinner on Saturday April 29. Time yet to be determined.
Currently we have a roster of 14 members. Please consider joining our department or Lyle’s as a volunteer. Both could use more personnel on the roster, men and women. We will train individuals through local on-the-job training and/or through other training opportunities with local fire departments. You can be part of this dedicated group committed to helping their neighbors when called.