Community Newsletter
Serving Jefferson County Fire District #5 No. 2 - May 2008
Chief's
Corner / Fire
Commissions' News / CERT /
Security Alert /
Spring Cleaning /
Project Linus /
Happenings / Editors Note
/ Printable Version
The
Chief's Corner
JCFD # 5
Chief’s Newsletter
April
28 2008
First off I want to express my appreciation to those
of you that have attended the wildland training this month. Don
Svetich has done a great job of leading the refresher course and I want
to thank him for the time he put in. Remember to review your
wildland PPE and make sure you have everything you might need. How
are your boots and gloves? Break them in if they are new!
For those of us with the red card, we will be doing the pack test
sometime in May or early June. I suggest you start walking ASAP to
prepare. Three miles, forty five pounds in forty five minutes is the
requirement.
The Board of Commissioners and I have been working on the Station # 52
building project. Out of five agencies that submitted letters of
interest Craig Owen from Port Angeles has been picked as the project
engineer by the Board. He will start on April 29th doing
measurements and looking into some of the walls.
I submitted a proposal to the Board of Commissioners to purchase a 1991
Ford E350 ambulance that has a gross vehicle weight of 15,000 lbs.
The unit has approximately 35,000 miles on it and comes with maintenance
records. We secured the vehicle for $6500.00 from Fort Loramie
Fire Rescue in Ohio. Dick Hanel has offered to make the journey
back to pick the unit up. The ambulance should be here by May 9th.
Firefighters / EMT’s Jay Stickney and Jason Royer assisted Steve Monroe
with putting a hard wire phone line into the emergency operations room
at the Gardiner Community Center.
FF / EMT- IV Eric Brucker attended the Gardiner Community yard sale.
He provided free blood pressure checks to the community.
We replaced the two front tires on Aid # 51 and worked on the shore
power charger on Aid # 52.
Lt. Shawn Moos resigned from the fire district last week. I am
sorry to see him leave but I do understand his desire to be with his son
and his need to search for work outside the area. I want to thank
Shawn for the many years of dedicated service he gave to the community.
George DeBruyn has had to quit the EMT class for personal reasons.
He will stay on in a support role, which I am very thankful for!
At the next Board meeting, the Board will be considering a new recruit
that lives just west of the District boundary. She is currently
enrolled in the EMT class so hopefully after graduation she will be able
to lend a hand on occasion. The reason I put it that way is she
has a full time job and two children.
The Board and I will be working on short and long term planning over the
next couple of months. Community input will be greatly appreciated
as we move forward in our attempt to provide service to the Discovery
Bay / Gardiner areas. Over the next several months we will be
putting out volunteer needed signs and possibly go door to door in an
attempt to find firefighter / EMT candidates. I realize that this
service is not for everyone, but someone needs to fill the void.
Otherwise, response will be delayed at a time when help might be needed
most for you or your loved ones.
Please feel free to call me if you have any ideas, suggestions or
concerns!
Sincerely,
Bob Wilson
Fire Chief
Next Meeting: Tuesday, June 13, 3:00 pm
Fire Commissioners News
Ever wonder what your Board of Fire Commissioners
duties are? What happens at their monthly meetings? What is the status
of our Fire Department?
We would like to inform residents and tax payers of Jefferson County
Fire District #5 what the issues and challenges are short term and long
term:
STAFFING, STAFFING, STAFFING
Capitol Projects – facilities
Equipment
Independence
We are currently in a critical staffing shortage due to lack of
volunteers, either Firefighters or EMTs . The personnel we have on board
are supported with up-to-date training materials and weekly operations
training by Chief Bob Wilson. However, our population is predominately
retired people, which is not conducive for active participation.
Realistically it is a commitment of time and energy and not everyone is
willing to fight fires or answer a call for medical services. Many of
our residents started this Fire Department and provided their services
for their fellow neighbors and residents of JCFD #5. So what do we do to
serve our residents? Currently we staff our Gardiner Station with “Day
Duty” personnel with a Firefighter I/EMT qualification. This is not
within our limited budget funds and we are currently utilizing our
Timber Tax Funds to provide this service 7 days a week, however, this is
not a long term solution. Call Chief Bob Wilson if you would like to
volunteer. (360-774-0674)
Currently Station #52 in Gardiner is undergoing a structural analysis by
an engineer, as deficiencies in support beams and posts are apparent. We
won’t know the extent of the problems until his analysis and “as built”
drawings are completed along with recommendations for options to correct
the building deficiencies. Station #51 in Discovery Bay needs to be
torn down and rebuilt. We are searching for Grant Funds for that
project.
What can we do to solve these problems? We are reviewing all options;
any suggestions from residents please either call your commissioners or
bring your comments to the meeting May 13. Considerable planning and
discussion will be needed between residents and your Fire Commissioners
to resolve these issues.
Our Board of Fire Commissioners meet on the second Tuesday of each month
at 3 pm at the Gardiner Fire Station. We welcome constructive input from
residents and encourage you to attend the meetings as we work our way
through our challenges and continue to move our fire district forward.
Chief Wilson wants to remind all citizens that we have eliminated the
need to have a burn permit for residential yard waste. Fires up to
4' x 4' are allowed as long as the homeowner has a shovel and a garden
hose within reach (the hose does need to have a water supply).
Any larger fires need to have an Olympic Region Clean Air Agency permit
and they can be reached at 360-417-2515. We ask that you call
prior to burning your yard waste 360-797-7711. The countywide burn ban
will go into effect 7-1-08 through 9-31-08 depending on weather
conditions. Any questions please call Chief Wilson at 360-774-0674
George Eims, Barb Knoepfle, Linda Hanel
JCFD #5 Fire Commissioners
Elizabeth Van Dyke
PREPARING FOR DISASTERS
How do you tell the difference between Winter, Spring
and Summer in Gardiner? The rain gets warmer!
I attended the Communications Academy near Seattle on April 5 and 6,
2008. This annual event brings together people from many
backgrounds and several nations to learn the latest best practices and
technologies involved in disaster communications.
There were people from many emergency and disaster Ham Radio groups; law
enforcement; fire departments; the FBI; Homeland Security; Red Cross,
emergency radio manufacturers and two astronauts! Quite a few cities had
their large mobile communications units available to tour.
Charles Simonyi, one of the astronauts, gave a talk including how he
used an unmodified Ham Radio in the International Space Station to
communicate with other Ham Radio operators and school children on earth.
It was very interesting to hear the insider’s view of astronaut training
and communicating from space.
The interest in Ham Radio communications during disasters has increased
greatly since the twin towers were destroyed in New York on 9/11.
Gary Fell, KD7MWL, runs the ARES/RACES (emergency and disaster Ham Radio
communications group) in Jefferson County. He personally graduated
sixty people to the first level of their Ham Radio license in the last
year. There are three levels of Ham Radio operators:
Technician, General and Extra.
In addition to our many regular activities, our
ARES/RACES group can be called upon to assist in search and rescue
operations, especially in the mountains where cell and fire satellite
radios may not function. We relay emergency communications in and
out of remote areas so professional help can arrive as soon as possible.
In the same month, we may be asked to help with emergency communications
deep in the mountains, then support the Rhody Run in Port Townsend,
helping to make sure the runners and bystanders get a fast response if a
medical emergency should arise.
As a Ham Radio operator, you are not allowed to receive monetary
payment, but it is certainly a rewarding activity in many other ways.
In a disaster or wide-spread emergency, some of the challenges we face
in our area include our communications being cut off; rural isolation;
wildfires; earthquakes; homes in the Tsunami range; prolonged power
outages; several severe storms annually; hazardous material on Highway
101; the additional population of “road refugees” who could be stranded
on Highway 101 with little to no food, water or shelter for themselves;
and let’s face it, a local population with more ailments than we’d like
to think about.
The Miller Peninsula CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) has a
unique Mutual Aid Agreement across the Jefferson and Clallam County
lines between Gardiner and Diamond Point. We train together and
share some resources. Many CERT members also have formal First
Aid, Adult and Pediatric CPR and Automatic Defibrillator training.
Our CERT activities are aligned with law, fire and county disaster
plans. We follow the Incident Command System just like law and
fire departments. Simply put, that means there is one trained
leader who is in charge of the situation. That way everyone is on
the same page during a disaster. This cuts down on confusion and
duplication of efforts.
A special thank you goes out to Dan and Marylou Tatum and Bobbie Rodgers
for their recent generous donations to the Area 5 (Gardiner) Command
Room used for emergency or disaster communications.
If anyone would like more information about the CERT teams or how to get
a Ham Radio license, please let me know and I’d be glad to help.
SECURITY ALERT
Elizabeth Van Dyke
A Jefferson County Deputy Sheriff has suggested that
Gardiner area residents be alerted to recent break-ins in our community.
At least two buildings in Gardiner have been broken into in the last few
weeks and money and property have been stolen. The buildings were not
occupied at the time of the thefts. Cars have been broken into over the
last few months.
Please take extra precautions with your security and lock up your home,
outbuildings and vehicles. If you see anything or anyone suspicious,
please call 911. Turn lights on in your house if you are away at night.
The thief cut himself/herself towards the end of April while climbing in
or out of a window they broke to enter a building. The cut is possibly
on their left hand but it could be elsewhere on their person.
If the thief hears of this message, it may go easier on you if you turn
yourself in.
You left your DNA behind.
Community Center Spring Cleaning
Bob McCauley
On Saturday, March 29th, members of the community came through and did
the Spring Cleaning of the Community Center. The GCC Board thanks the
following volunteers in this effort: Linda Hanel, Jan Hintermayr,
Bob McCauley, Dennis Martin, Joyce Minty, Cindy and Wendell Paulson,
Rich and Debra Quinnell, Bev Howe and Elizabeth Van Dyke.
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Project Linus
Pat Gracz
If you knit, crochet or quilt and want to give some comfort and security to a sick child, why not make a blanket for Project Linus! Project Linus is a national non-profit organization with the sole purpose of giving warmth and security to very ill or traumatized children. The WA Peninsula Chapter has delivered over 8,000 blankets. The majority of the blankets go to Children’s Hospital in Seattle. Others go to Olympic Medical Hospital, Children Services in Port Angeles, Pregnancy & Family Resource Services in Port Hadlock and special needs as they arise. We have also donated to fire victims, the Katrina disaster and 9/11. If you would like to donate a new handmade washable/dryable blanket, please contact Pat Gracz, Coordinator at patgracz@olypen.com or 360-797-7311.
Regular Events
Exercise Class, Mon, Wed, 8:30-9:30 am
Yoga Class, Tues, Thurs, 9:00-10:30 am
Community Center Board, 1st Wed, 9:30 am
Jefferson Cty Cemetery Dist #3, 1st Wed, 7:30 pm
JCFD #5 Commissioners, 2nd Tues., 3:00 pm
Gardiner Garden Club, 2nd Thurs, 11 am - 3 pm
Community Center Board
President – Dennis Martin
Vice President – Bob McCauley
Secretary – Suzanne Rehder
Treasurer – Linda Hanel
Member – George DeBruyn
Member – Elizabeth Van Dyke
Member – Wendell Paulson
Editor’s Note – by Bob McCauley
Welcome to the Community Newsletter. The Newsletter is a quarterly
publication of the Gardiner Community Center that is mailed to registered voter
households of Jefferson County Fire District #5. Additional copies will be
available at the Gardiner Community Center and Discovery Bay Store. It is
intended to provide news and information concerning the Gardiner and
Discovery Bay communities as well as Jefferson County Fire District #5.
• Articles will be timely in content (events
occurring one month prior and one month after publication).
• Articles must be non-political and non-commercial, signed by author for publication.
• All articles and information
will be approved by the Editor and the Gardiner Community Center Board.
• Length of articles is limited due to space.
• We welcome articles submitted by residents of
JCFD #5.
• Deadline of two weeks prior to publication, to be
set by Editor, for submission of articles. NO EXCEPTIONS
• Phone Editor, Bob McCauley, for further
information at 797-2106, or by mail at the Gardiner Community Center, 980 Old
Gardiner Rd, Sequim, WA 98382
Publication of any article does not represent an endorsement or recommendation of either the Gardiner Community Center or the Board of Directors. We accept no liability for the content of this newsletter, or for the consequences of any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. While we endeavor to ensure that the information is correct, we do not warrant its completeness or accuracy. Any views, opinions or information presented are solely those of the author