Welcome Back Fireworks Season

Welcome back summer, welcome back to back yard barbecues, northwest Oregon style "warm" days, camping trips, and of course fireworks season.  Independence Day is just around the corner and already the sounds of celebration can be heard in our neighborhoods.  We are in a tough spot here in the Portland Metro Area, less than an hour from the State of Washington it's easy for our neighbors to make a run to Vancouver or Longview and pick up the usual roman candles, mortar shells, firecrackers, and bottle rockets that light up our evening sky this time of year.  Before you make that trip across the Columbia River we wanted to take a second to urge you about not only the dangers of illegal fireworks but caution you also the risk you take to your pocket book if you get caught using fireworks that aren't legal in Oregon.  

Getting caught in the City of Forest Grove with illegal fireworks is not just a violation of State Laws but it also violates our own locally adopted City Codes and Ordinances and can bring with it a $1,000 citation and invitation to plead your case in our Municipal Court.  If a Firefighter or Police Officer catches you with illegal fireworks in your possession you will lose your fireworks and it is up to the Officer if a citation will be issued.  This may seem silly to those that use illegal fireworks, but every year we get dozens of phone calls reporting illegal fireworks and generally speaking people are just not comfortable with them booming in their neighborhoods or shrieking into the sky above their homes.  Though illegal fireworks may be more enjoyable to some, they not only create a potential for fires and injuries, but are also responsible for anxiety to persons and pets.  Forest Grove Fire & Rescue is teaming up with our partners at the Forest Grove Police Department to hit the streets and patrol for illegal fireworks.  On both July 3rd and July 4th special task forces of police officers and firefighters will be out in our neighborhoods on the lookout for people violating these simple to follow Oregon laws and local ordinances.  The basic rule is that Oregon law bans possession, use, or sale of fireworks that fly, explode, or travel more than six feet on the ground or 12 inches into the air. Fireworks commonly called bottle rockets, Roman Candles, and firecrackers are ILLEGAL in Oregon.  

It's not just the illegal fireworks that firefighters are concerned with however.  Every year common fireworks that you can purchase at any stand here in Forest Grove are the ignition source for fires in both brush and structures.  This doesn't have to happen, if you use the fireworks in a safe place like a concrete, rocked, or paved area where there is no chance that sparks or hot fireworks can find their way into brush or against fences or buildings you should be just fine.  Sadly, many of these fires are actually started by children.  Our fireworks retailers do a pretty good job of keeping sales to adults only but kids will be kids and they often find the fireworks at home or from a friend and that leads to disaster.  Parents need to understand that fireworks are not toys and that they can be held financially and legally responsible for their children's actions and not only the damages caused, but the cost of fighting a fire caused by fireworks as well

Once you are done using fireworks the risk of fire isn't over just yet.  Give your fireworks a few minutes to cool down and then soak them with a garden hose and place them in a container full of water.  Locate this container away from the house, shed, brush, or fences and wait until they are well soaked before you throw them away.  Every year homes in the metro area receive damage from fires started by improperly disposed of fireworks that were not allowed enough time to cool off or placed inside plastic garbage cans next to the home.  

Have a safe Independence Day Holiday and why don't you leave the fireworks to the professionals.  Stop by the City of Forest Grove Old Time Fireworks Show and Independence Day Celebration on July 4th at Tom McCall Elementary School.  This family friendly event will start with live music from local singer songwriter Josh Smith at 8:30 pm and a fireworks show by Forest Grove's own pyrotechnician Chris Sutton.  No personal fireworks, alcohol, or tobacco will be allowed on school grounds, but feel free to bring a blanket and lay out on the fields and enjoy the show.   

Forest Grove's Firefighters Sponsor Fireworks Show

It's been quite a few years, but the feeling of patriotism is back in Forest Grove for 2012 as the Forest Grove Firefighter's Association is a proud sponsor of the return of an Independence Day Celebration and Fireworks Show.  This family friendly event will be held on Wednesday July 4th on the fields at Tom McCall Upper Elementary School (1341 Pacific Avenue), and admission is free.

Live music from Forest Grove resident Josh Smith will kick off the celebration at 8:30 pm.  Josh is a former firefighter from Gaston who joined the United States Army in response to the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.  He served in combat during the war in Iraq and was honorably discharged from the Army in 2009.  Recently Josh took first place in the Portland Singer/Songwriter Showcase, his debut album titled "Honey Badger" is available on iTunes.

Once the sky turns dark at 10:00 pm the fireworks show will begin.  Local business owner, and licensed pyrotechnician, Chris Sutton will awe the crowd with a fireworks display worthy of the birthday of the greatest nation on Planet Earth.  We encourage those living close by to walk to the show, but parking is available at the Tom McCall campus parking lots which are located at 1255 and 1341 Pacific Avenue.  There will be excellent viewing from the fields north of Tom McCall East and Tom McCall West so bring a blanket to lay out on the grass and enjoy the show.  

This event is sponsored by the Forest Grove Firefighter's Association, Forest Grove Chamber of Commerce, and the Forest Grove Foundation.  Because of this sponsorship, there is no fee for admission to this year's event; however a $10.00 suggested donation will help sponsors pay for not only this, but future fireworks shows.  Your support helps keep this great tradition going.

This is a family friendly event that is being held on the grounds of the Forest Grove Public School District - no alcohol, tobacco, or personal fireworks are permitted on Forest Grove School District property.           

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Volunteer Fire Captain Bob Haney retires after 41 years of service to our community.

The year was 1971, the average cost of a new home was $25,000, a gallon of leaded gasoline cost .40 cents, Richard Nixon was still the President, and Led Zeppelin had just released their fourth album a vinyl record called IV.  In the midst of all of that a young man named Bob Haney, fresh from the US Navy and a tour off the coast of Vietnam on board the aircraft carrier USS Ticonderoga, had returned to his hometown.  Looking for a way to help out, Bob applied to be a volunteer firefighter here in Forest Grove.  Times were different then, the hundreds of hours of training needed to become a volunteer hadn't existed yet and Bob was handed a set of firefighting gear and learned as he went.  Bob worked up through the ranks at the Forest Grove Fire Department, eventually becoming a Captain and a Department Safety Officer, he was also honored as our Officer of the Year in 1989.  If you have been around the small town of Forest Grove you may already know Bob, he delivered mail for the US Postal Service for a number of years until his retirement from there just a few years ago, he made Forest Grove his hometown for life where along with his wife Debbie, they raised their children Victor and Jeni in the family home.  Almost as soon as he was old enough, his son Victor followed in Bob's footsteps and also became a volunteer firefighter in our community.

On June 4, 2012 after 41 years of service to the community Captain Bob Haney retired from service with the Forest Grove Fire Department.  Joined by family, friends, and fellow firefighters from the past and present, Bob celebrated his four decades of service with a retirement party at our Forest Grove Fire Station.  Kind words were said, funny stories were told, and honors were presented on the evening of June 4, and finally right at 6:30 p.m. our dispatch center issued a final call out for Captain Bob Haney, letting him know that all was under control and thanking him for his service to our community.  With that final ringing of the historic fire station bell Bob no longer needs to crawl out of bed in the odd hours of the night, or leave family events, or even a movie on television on a rainy afternoon and his volunteer firefighter service came to a close. 

Flanked by his wife Debbie and daughter Jeni, Bob takes one last photo in uniform along with his son Victor and his wife Megan and Bob's grandchildren in front of our Engine 421.

Victor Haney presented his father Bob with a polished brass firefighter's axe as a retirement gift to recognize the four decades of being a volunteer firefighter and serving the Forest Grove Firefighter's Association.

 

On behalf of Forest Grove Fire & Rescue and a grateful community we want to thank Bob and Debbie Haney for over four decades of exceptional, dedicated, and heartfelt commitment to serving the citizens of the City of Forest Grove and the Forest Grove Rural Fire Protection District.