What is that fire engine doing in my town?

Two weeks ago we were dispatched along with other Washington County fire agencies to a third alarm barn fire in rural Newberg. As we always do we posted a message on our Twitter page that we were responding to the fire, which drew a reply from one of our Twitter followers commenting that Newberg was "pretty far" for us to respond to. In addition this comment, one of the more common questions we hear is "why was a Cornelius engine in town last night?" The quick answer is because we have what are called "Mutual Aid Agreements". For us that makes sense, but what does that term really mean to our community?

The view from inside one of Newberg's emergency vehicles as they responded to the fire on March 20

Forest Grove Fire & Rescue (as well as every other fire department in the metro area) has what we call mutual aid agreements with our neighboring fire agencies. The same can be said at the County level where the Washington County Fire Defense Board (a group that represents regionally and state wide all of the fire departments in our county) maintains mutual aid agreements with other counties. What these mutual aid agreements do for us is let firefighters cross those invisible lines that we call district borders all in an effort to support each other when needed to safely solve the emergencies that arise.

When a large fire, such as the one on March 20th in Newberg, occurs it can be very difficult for a single fire department to handle on their own. As you can see in the photos, this fire was not something that a single fire engine with 750 gallons of water was going to be able to control on their own. On fires we respond with what is called a "Box", each box is one square mile on a map of the region, and a typical fire will start out with what we call a 1st Alarm Box Assignment. Basically an alarm is a preassigned number of fire engines, a chief officer, a rescue, and depending on if the call is in the city or a rural area it will either have a ladder truck or a water tender. Each greater alarm just brings in a similar amount of equipment. With the Newberg incident the fire went to a 3rd alarm with numerous fire engines, water tenders (because it was in a rural area that did not have nearby fire hydrants to support the engines), and the like responding to the call.

A closer scene view of the 3rd alarm barn fire in Newberg on March 20 shows what the first firefighters to arrive were up against. Barns can be thousands of square feet and filled with heavy loads of combustibles that require dozens of firefighters and tens of thousands of gallons of water to extinguish.

In Forest Grove our mutual aid agencies will be dependant on the type of call and the location where it is occurring. In the city if a 1st alarm structure fire happened right now we would get the bulk of the equipment from our Station 4, but an engine from Cornelius (station 8) would also respond. If a car crashes on NW Highway 47 near the community of Roy we would send an engine and a rescue, and Banks would send down an engine to assist as well. It goes both ways, on Thursday of last week when two boys capsized their sailboat at Hagg Lake; Gaston responded as the lead agency, but we responded with our boat, as did Newberg with their boat and dive team, in addition to surface water rescue teams from both Hillsboro and TVFR. This is all coordinated through an automated system at our dispatch center in Tanasbourne that recognizes the type of call, and depending on the request from the incident commander what type of unit is appropriate and based on availability, where to dispatch the next units from.

On much larger incidents we can even be sent across the state. Last summer we were part of a contingent of Washington County Fire Departments that sent equipment and firefighters to the "Microwave Fire" near The Dalles. In recent history our most distant response was sending a 3,000 gallon water tender to help protect structures threatened by a wildfire that was burning around Halfway in north east Oregon. More locally, in the summer of 1999 a large wildfire was burning in a logged area near Gaston that required a 4th alarm assignment. When we returned that evening we were greeted at our station by a crew from Lake Oswego who had been dispatched to cover our city while we worked at the fire scene.

All of this has been worked through over the years, tested, and improved upon as needed. Part of this cooperative effort has expanded; so that we are all able to work together more seamlessly we start from the ground up. Twice a year, new volunteer firefighters from every single fire agency in Washington County attend a joint training academy. New recruits travel from fire station to fire station each weekend where every department has split the curriculum so that the recruits learn different topics from each fire agency. This training and overall familiarity with not only the people in the fire departments but the overall standardized practices make it that much easier to work together on an emergency scene. We're extremely fortunate to have this cooperation, there are parts of the country where pride and politics don't allow for such easy assistance from neighboring fire districts. This is just one of many ways that we work to find creative solutions to solve the emergencies that we are dispatched to.

Busy week for our rescue boat

Spring Break 2010 has been a busy week for our rescue boat. On Monday our crews responded to Dorman's Pond, a small but popular fishing spot a few miles west of Gales Creek, to a report of a man that had fallen into the water from a small raft. Sadly, after searching the water for 30 minutes our crews recovered the man's body from the murky water. Today we were dispatched with Gaston Fire to Henry Hagg Lake south of Forest Grove after a sailboat was spotted capsized in the lake. By the time that our crews arrived the two teenage boys who were in the boat had managed to safely reach the shore, but needless to say were wet, very cold, and extremely lucky to be alive.

Crews from FGF&R Boat 4 search for the missing fisherman at Dorman's Pond on Monday

In each incident the people involved were not wearing life jackets. Today's incident could have brought a tragic end to what has already started out to be a dangerous and deadly spring break for those on the water in Western Washington County.

There is no excuse not to wear a life jacket, in Oregon (according to the State Marine Board) 90% of all drowning victims would have survived had they been wearing a life jacket. We talked about this a few weeks ago when we had a blog post about, ironically, Hagg Lake boating safety. So once more here are some detailed tips on finding the proper life jacket and how to take care of it once you do have one.

1. First off, it's the law in Oregon that all children under 12 wear a life jacket while in the boat. In fact you cant even operate your boat if those under 12 don't have a coast guard approved life jacket on. But lets take this a step farther, parents and older kids should have them on too. Swimming around the back yard pool is one thing, but could you survive the 300+ yard swim across the lake if you fell in?

2. Does the life jacket fit you properly? We found this information on the State of Oregon Marine Board's website about proper life jacket fitting:

"Use the "touchdown test" to check if a life jacket fits. With the jacket on, raise your arms as though signaling a touchdown. If when looking to the left, right and over the shoulder, the chest part of the jacket doesn't hit the chin, the device probably fits. A good test for children is to have a child stand normally, arms at sides. Grab the life jacket at the shoulders and firmly lift up. If you can move the life jacket more than three inches up and down the child's body, it doesn't fit. A life jacket that doesn't fit could endanger the wearer as much as not wearing one. Check the PFD label for restrictions and limitations on its use and performance type."

3. Check your life jacket annually. Is it free of damage, including rips, tears, sunlight and UV damage? Will it even float? Throw it in the water and make sure that it will float, or better yet in a shallow pool test it out yourself. If it doesn't float, can't float you, or is damaged, replace it; don't even try and use it as a spare. The lives of those in your boat depend on this life jacket, now is not the time to be cheap. Remember the statistic, 90% of those who drowned in Oregon would have survived if they were wearing a properly fitting life jacket.

Those seem like simple steps, but no one ever plans to capsize their boat, or worse yet drown in the lake that 15 minutes before they were enjoying fishing at. These water emergencies happen so fast and often times so far away from where help can get to you quickly, it is up to you to be responsible before hitting the water. Two times in one week is enough for us, please be careful out there.

Spring Break Bike Riding

What are your plans for spring break? Maybe a family camping trip to nearby Stub Stewart State Park, or a day trip over the Wilson River Highway to the Tillamook Cheese Factory is in store for you this year; but what if you can't get away? Forest Grove Schools will be out starting Thursday of this week and spring break will continue until school resumes on Monday, March 29th. During that time we expect to see more and more kids on their bicycles riding to destinations all over the community. Parents, before your kids hit the bike lanes help them out and talk to them about bike safety.

Perhaps the most important life saving tool your kids can wear is a properly fitting bike helmet. This video from Safe Kids USA will help you understand how to ensure that their head is protected from injury. We have responded to dozens of bicycle crashes in the last few years and these helmets really do save lives as well as prevent serious injuries.

A bike helmet only helps in a crash, so what else can you do to make sure that the crash doesn't happen in the first place? Start by checking out the bike, are the tires inflated properly? What about reflectors, are they visible on all sides of the bicycle? If not reflective stickers can be found at local bicycle shops to help make the bike more visible at night or in low light. Finally take a second and make sure that all of the moving parts are in good condition. The chain is lubricated, the brakes actually will stop the bicycle, and all of the nuts and bolts are still tight.

Lastly talk to your kids, know where they are riding, who they are riding with and when they will be expected to return. Have a conversation with them about the rules of the road and be sure they understand where they can and can't ride their bicycles. If you have areas where you don't want them to ride (like busy streets, rural roads, etc.) explain to them why. Kids will be kids, most of us (especially the boys) tried all kinds of crazy stunts with our bikes in our youth and we would be foolish parents to expect that our kids wouldn't try and do the same things. At the same time taking a few minutes to check out those bikes that have been sitting in the garage all winter, and having a simple chat can make a difference preventing an accident or decreasing the chance of injury if an accident does occur.

So whether your travelling or staying home next week from all of us at FGF&R, have a safe spring break.

Changing your clock? Check your smoke alarm!

For years the national fire safety message that came along with the bi-annual changing of our clocks has been "Change your clock...change your smoke alarm batteries". In Oregon however our state laws require that if the smoke alarms in your home receive their power from only a battery, that the battery be considered a "long life" battery capable of ten years of continuous life. Obviously this poses a bit of a problem for Oregonians as the national message in effect actually voids the warranty on your battery operated smoke alarm. So what to do?

First, how old are your smoke alarms? All smoke alarms have about a ten year life span, once they get around 8 to 10 years old it is more likely that they will have more frequent false alarms, or worse yet fail to function when needed. If you have a smoke alarm, regardless of how it is powered and it is over ten years old replace it as soon as possible.

Second, identify if your smoke alarms are battery operated or if they are hard wired. Since 1998, battery operated smoke alarms sold in Oregon have been required to have a long life lithium battery that is designed to last ten years (conveniently the life of the smoke alarm). Now realistically we find that these batteries often times wont make it the entire ten years, but they consistently last longer then the older 9 volt Alkaline batteries we all used prior to the new style Lithium 9V.

If your smoke alarm is solely battery operated and does have a long life battery all you have to do is test it. You can do this by pushing the test button until you hear a beep. That should be all it takes to make sure your smoke alarm will function when needed. Really twice a year isn't enough though, you should test these smoke alarms monthly and when you do it is also a great time to practice a family fire drill.

If you find that you have a battery operated smoke alarm without a long life battery replace the entire smoke alarm with one that does have a long life battery. You can find these at most retail stores, locally Ace Hardware, Bi-Mart, and Fred Meyer all sell smoke alarms, as well as the big box home improvement stores in Hillsboro.

Not all of us have a battery operated smoke alarm however, modern homes have their smoke alarms wired into the home's electrical system. If this is the case a battery back up (for if the power goes out) is required, but it does not have to be of the long life variety. Since the smoke alarm receives its power from the home, a standard 9V alkaline battery will be able to keep your smoke alarm operating if the power in your home does go out. These alkaline back up batteries are the only battery you should replace in a smoke alarm when you change your clocks.

If you are a low income resident FGF&R has a smoke alarm assistance program that is funded solely through private donations and grants that allows us to help you. You can call our fire station at 503.992.3240 and one of our firefighters will make sure that we get a smoke alarm out to you and we'll even install it in your home.

So you're changing your clocks this weekend, now what...

1. If your smoke alarm is ten years old, replace it.
2. If your smoke alarm is battery operated and has a long life battery, test it.
3. If your smoke alarm is hard wired, replace the back up battery.
4. If your smoke alarm is battery operated and does not have a long life battery, and is less then ten years old, get a long life battery for it.

Smoke alarm tips

• Install smoke alarms on each story of your home and outside all sleeping areas. If you sleep with your bedroom door shut a smoke alarm inside your bedroom is recommended.
• Clean your smoke alarm every so often, a little vacuum or computer keyboard cleaner will help keep the dust, and little mites and spiders that come with it from making a home inside your smoke alarm and creating false alarms.
• Test it! You walk past it each day and probably never notice it, but it takes only seconds to make sure it will work. In a fire the smoke is what kills, testing your smoke alarm monthly will drastically improve your chances of surviving a fire in your home.
• Practice, practice, practice a fire drill. Kids in school have to practice a fire drill every month, it seems so redundant at times, but our statistics prove that people do not lose their lives in school fires. Most fire deaths in Oregon occur in the home (most occur in homes without a working smoke alarm), and often times we find that families aren't prepared to handle an emergency in their homes. A simple family fire drill at different times of the day/night every month can help you all identify how to get out and what to do. The State Fire Marshal has a excellent fire drill form that your family can use to prepare and practice this absolutely vital safety item.
• If you have a false alarm, use the "hush" feature on your smoke alarms (also an Oregon requirement since 1998) to silence your alarm temporarily. Never unplug your alarm or remove it.

If you have questions please call us at 503.992.3240 or post a comment here and we will answer it. These devices are too inexpensive and too important to put off taking care of. Forest Grove has not had a fatality in a house fire since 1998; please help us be able to continue to say that, make sure that your smoke alarm is ready to protect your family.

FG Firefighters Climb for a Cure

The tallest building in Forest Grove comes in at a whopping four stories, but that doesn't stop our firefighters from traveling to Seattle every year to climb the tallest building on the West Coast. March 7th marked the fifth time that Forest Grove Firefighters have made the annual trek to the Emerald City to compete in the Scott Firefighter Stair Climb, a fundraiser for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, and the largest firefighter competition in the world.

This intimidating view is from the ground as our team gets ready to enter Seattle's Columbia Center

This year our sixteen member team set a goal to raise $2,500 for their efforts, at the time of this post they had exceeded that and raised $2,670 to donate to the fight against blood cancers. For months, and even beginning after last years event our firefighters would give up their own time and go into Portland at night to climb 44 stories at "Big Pink" , sometimes climbing the US Bancorp Tower multiple times each night to try and simulate the grueling 69 story climb in Seattle. All told the stair climb team would have to climb 69 floors in full firefighter gear while breathing only the air from the self contained breathing apparatus that we typically use inside of a hazardous area. In total all of this gear weighs close to 60 pounds and isn't your typical exercise clothing. With all of this weighing them down they have to climb 1,311 steps and what amounts to 788 vertical feet to get to the top and finish the event.

C Shift Captain Joe Smith changes air bottles on the 40th floor. Joe finished the event in just over 32 minutes.

During the event firefighters are grouped by age and gender as well as overall to determine their finishing place. Once again volunteer Firefighter Chad Bettencourt was our team leader finishing the event in 15 minutes 52 seconds. Chad finished 114th overall (out of 1294), and was around 5 minutes slower then the overall leader; Kory Burgess, a 28 year old from Missoula Montana who made the climb in 11 minutes and 1 second. Our youngest member on the team was 19 year old volunteer and former High School Cadet Damian Peters, who finished in 21 minutes and 20 seconds. Our team leader, C Shift Captain Joe Smith is also our oldest team member and finished the climb in 32 minutes 11 seconds, Joe actually has been instrumental in our getting involved in this event and has been the Forest Grove team leader every year.

Firefighters are already looking forward to next year, in fact a group was already in Portland climbing stairs the day after they returned from Seattle. More often then not the question our team members get is "why in the world would you put yourself through this?" Simply put, because of the smoke and things that we are exposed to in our jobs firefighters are more at risk for cancer then other groups. In fact in the case of Lymphoma firefighters are 50% more likely to become sick then the rest of our society. We work hard to prevent this and limit our exposure, but we cant stop it all, this event helps us fight these terrible cancers and win this battle against one of the largest killers of America's firefighters.

Here are the rest of our times with the overall finish out of 1294 who finished the event:

Chad Bettencourt 15 minutes 52.40 seconds 113th overall
Keith Baas 19 minutes 14.50 seconds 428th
Jake Stone 19 minutes 39.80 seconds 477nd
Damian Peters 21 minutes 20.15 seconds 613th
Nick McEvoy 21 minutes 24.20 seconds 621st
Ivan Bratchuk 21 minutes 57.75 seconds 624th
Ben Langbehn 21 minutes 57.75 seconds 683rd
Chad Toomey 22 minutes 4.35 seconds 706th
Joe Olson 24 minutes 37.75 seconds 876th
Will Murphy 26 minutes 27.15 seconds 986th
Brad Shinpaugh 27 minutes 59.55 seconds 1038th
Mindy Ingebretson 28 minutes 59.35 seconds 1066th
Joe Smith 32 minutes 11.45 seconds 1139th
Jason Miller 35 minutes 8.10 seconds 1183rd
Tony Carter 35 minutes 20.45 seconds 1186th

Good Job Everyone!

Is your boat ready for Hagg Lake trout season?

It may not seem like it right now with snow mixing with the rain that is falling across our part of the metro area but spring is just around the corner. Maybe you were one of the hundreds that already got a jump on spring like activity and were at Henry Hagg Lake for the opening day of trout fishing season last weekend, or perhaps you are getting your boat ready for a spring break adventure in the coming weeks. If so, now is a great time to add safety to your checklist as you get ready for spring time fun.


The most recent statistics we uncovered were from 2005, but according to the CDC on average there are ten accidental drownings every day in the United States. In these some very surprising numbers show that men are four times more likely then women to drown, and that 30% of all children between 1 and 4 that died did so due to drowning. So what can you do to keep your family from falling into one of these statistics?


First, learn to swim. It seems silly, but learning to swim is an easy first step that can help you if you find yourself in a water emergency. The City of Forest Grove Aquatics Center has regular swimming education classes that you and your family can sign up for. They even have offerings for the littlest members of your family, so get the kids started young so they learn to not be afraid of the water and know what to do when they are older.


Second, do you have life jackets in your boat? Every person in your boat should have a life jacket and better yet everyone needs to be wearing one at all times they are on or even near the water. Guys, now is not the time to be macho, remember the statistics you are four times more likely to drown then the opposite sex. Think about it guys, without a life jacket you may not be able to help your family if an emergency does happen. Be sure to check your life jackets, make sure they are in good condition, free of damage, and that they will adequately float who is wearing them.


Third, some simple safety tools and preparation for your boat. Often times you're loaded down with fishing tackle for every species known to swim, but do you have a fire extinguisher in case your motor or new fish finder catches fire, and if you do have a fire extinguisher do you know where it is and if it is even charged? What about an extra oar in case the motor does give out? Some basic hand tools to fix small problems are another great thing to have on hand in case something breaks.

You don't want to meet these guys on the water. All of our career firefighters are trained in surface water rescue, as practiced here in 2009 jointly with firefighters from Hillsboro FD at Henry Hagg Lake, south of Forest Grove.

Finally, please stay sober when on the water. Just like driving, alcohol can drastically impair your ability to think clearly and act safely when your in your boat. A fun day can turn tragic in just a matter of minutes so please leave the beer at your camp.

All of our career firefighters are trained in water rescue techniques. In fact we provide regular swim standards training and also include boat and water rescue operations in our training schedule. We may not directly serve the Hagg Lake area, but we do respond with the firefighters from the Gaston RFPD to provide a boat to assist with their water rescue teams. We know its early, those warm days of July and August and all of the water sport that comes with them are still a far off thought, but Hagg Lake is open now, so before you get in your boat and limit out on trout, please make safety a priority for you and your family.

Daily Training at Station 4

On average our firefighters will be dispatched to around 8 calls during their 24 hour shift rotation at Station 4 in Forest Grove. One of the most frequently asked question is what do the firefighters do between calls? At FG&R firefighter training is the top priority for our crews between calls. In fact each of our shifts are required to perform 200 hours of training each month, which works out to 40 hours for each of the five firefighters assigned to each of our three shifts. This training covers the range of topics and scenarios that our crews are expected to be prepared for, and can be everything from basic firefighting techniques to more advanced topics like specialized rescue or advanced life support care.

Today our B Shift crew worked on Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) skills with our Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Chief Rick Schneider. Rick has worked in Washington County EMS since 1969, and was our A Shift Lieutenant until he retired from his full time position with FGF&R in 2007. Back now as a volunteer Division Chief, Rick (he also currently works as a Paramedic on Lifeflight) brings his 40 years of experience and knowledge back to our community training our EMT and Paramedic Firefighters in the high stress field of patient care.

All of our career firefighters are EMT's and of the 15 line firefighters at FGF&R eight are EMT-Paramedics, which is the highest level of certification. Each EMT level requires particular hours of training in certain topic areas every two years to maintain your certification. Today's ACLS training focused on the always intense cardiac emergencies. When your heart stops the blood flow to your brain stops with it. Every minute that your brain is without oxygen your chance of survival decreases by 10%. Our training focused on getting our medics to think quickly and make decisions that would be beneficial to the survival of the patient in these types of emergencies. Each of our firefighters were able to lead a different scenario today where they had to interpret exactly what type of cardiac emergency the patient was having and what treatments were appropriate to manage the scene and hopefully create a positive outcome.

In this photo B Shift Captain Dwight Lanter and FF Ivan Bratchuk are preparing to perform CPR on a patient while FGF&R's newest Paramedic Keith Baas (kneeling back to camera) prepares the correct medication for the "patient".

In each scenario our firefighters were presented with a patient that at first started with either a breathing problem or chest pain, and as the call progressed, their condition worsened. Our crews had to make split second decisions on what procedures would improve the situation based on the information that was presented to them just as they would on a real emergency. Paramedics practiced advanced skills like interpreting cardiac rhythms on our heart monitor (which is seen in the photo above), starting IV lines, administering medications, airway device procedures, and the basic skills of CPR and understanding symptoms and vital signs. It may be hard to believe but our medical equipment and medications are similar to what you would be treated with in an emergency room of a hospital, and the training between being a Paramedic and being an emergency room nurse is not all that different, in fact all of our EMTs are supervised and trained regularly by an actual Hospital Emergency Room Physician. It sounds cliche, but in a real emergency seconds do count, this training is invaluable to prepare our crews to act quickly and hopefully help them create a positive outcome if one of their calls is this serious.

Spring Backyard Burning Season

March 1, begins the annual spring backyard burning season. Now is the time to clear your yard debris and dispose of them before the summer months. The spring burn season is regulated by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and typically runs from March 1 to June 15. It is important to note that DEQ consideres the air quality of each day when they decide to open burning or not. Fire departments can close burning, but only because of fire safety concerns such as hot and dry weather. This fire safety burn ban generally starts in July and runs into October, but it can start earlier if weather conditions dictate a concern for fire safety. To find out if burning is allowed you can call 503.992.3242 every day to hear a pre-recorded message on our open burning hotline.

Backyard burning is allowed in Forest Grove and the surrounding communities and cities. DEQ does have an open burning ban area in Washington County, but it does not include the areas protected by our fire department. In the city of Forest Grove there are alternatives to burning that you may want to consider this spring. Perhaps the easiest is the curb side green waste debris containers from our Waste Management hauler. This weekly service can help most residential customers get rid of their unused yard debris.

If you are a gardner a great debris removal option may be composting. This "green" method can help you rid yourself of your yard debris while at the same time creating wonderful soil for your garden. I have personally found that composting takes a little effort and practice to get the methods to work, but if you have a little bit of extra room you can easily dispose of your yard debris and some household waste as well all the while creating awesome soil for use in your yard and garden.

If these options do not work for you or your property you can burn your debris. Some fire safety guidelines and good ideas if you do choose to burn your debris:

1. Only burn dry debris, covering your piles during the rainy days can cut down on the smoke and complaints that we recieve from frustrated neighbors.
   
2. Only burn legal debris, back yard burning is for yard debris like limbs and brush, burning garbage, lumber, or other materials is strictly against the DEQ open burning regulations and can bring a hefty fine from the local DEQ office.
   
3. Locate your burn well away from anything that can burn like fences, structures, and other vegetation and landscaping. Also clear all grass so you have a three foot wide fire break of bare dirt around your burn pile. This will help prevent the grass from burning or escaping sparks from igniting things you dont want it to.
   
4. Always attend your burn pile, have a garden hose, and one of a shovel/pitchfork/rake avaialble to help control the fire if it starts to get out of hand. If you think the fire is at risk of getting out of control call 9-1-1 immediately.
   
5. Once you are done burning please make sure that the fire is completely out. Just like a campfire in the summer time, soak your ash and debris with water and stir them with a shovel until you can no longer notice any steam.

This burn pile near Dilley got out of control and spread to the surrounding field last summer

Some phone numbers and resources that you may need this burn season:

• Open Burning Hotline for daily burning updates 503.992.3242 (updated daily by 8:30 am)
  
• Emergency dispatch for out of control burns 9-1-1. Other non emergency calls please use the 24 hour non emergency number 503.629.0111.
  
• To report an air quality complaint, smoke, or other illegal burning please call the Portland DEQ office at 503.229.5393.
  
• DEQ Open Burning Guide to help answer your questions regarding open burning infomration

One final thing, the always present question about agricultural burning. Ag burning is considered by the DEQ to be for burning debris from an actual farming operation. We commonly get questions from rural residents that ask if they can burn because back yard burning is closed, but Ag burning is open. Ag burning is not intended for typical land debris removal for our rural community unless it is from an agricultural operation.