Sarah Hancock, Fire Chief
Thank you, neighbors, for a well-attended Firefighters Appreciation Banquet on April 27, 2024. We had a full house! We also very much appreciate the numerous snack and drink donations we received for this year’s wildfire season! It is not unusual for our volunteers to be on a fire scene for many hours without a meal; these snacks are easy to carry in our packs and will help tremendously while we fight fires.
The appreciation awards for the 2023 season were:
Firefighter of the Year: Chris Roper
Mentors of the Year: Dave Thom and Tom McMackin
Rookies of the Year: Edwardo Ornelas and Ken Hill
Teambuilder of the Year: Brenda Edin
Humanitarian of the Year: James Day
New EMT on board!
Congratulations to Samuel Holman who, as of May 3, 2024, is a Washington State certified EMT. High Prairie now has 1 EMR, 3 EMTs, and 2 Paramedics serving our community and surrounding areas. Our other 11 volunteers are certified in first-aid.
What is the difference between first-aid, an EMR (Emergency Medical Responder), EMT (Emergency Medical Technician), AEMT (Advanced Emergency Medical Technician), and Paramedic? Basically, it’s the level of education and the kind of procedures each is allowed to perform. Paramedics have the highest level of education of the 5 skill levels.
Klickitat County Burn Ban coming soon!
The county is divided into 3 zones: Eastern Klickitat County is Zone 1, the central part of the county (which includes High Prairie) is Zone 2, and the western end of the county is Zone 3. Zone 1’s burn ban is expected to begin May 20th. Zone 2’s burn ban will likely start around the same time. Stay tuned!