Federalgrant boosts volunteer program and leads to personnel changes at FGF&R

Forest Grove Fire & Rescue is honored to announce that through a Department of Homeland Security Grant we will be able to fund a full time position to combat the challenging problem of Volunteer Firefighter recruitment and retention.  Forest Grove is like many communities nationwide that cannot fiscally support a fully staffed professional fire department, and even though we currently have fifteen full time firefighters on staff, with only five assigned to each of our 24 hour shifts we still depend on a response from our Volunteers for not only fire emergencies, but also to cover medical calls occurring at the same time.   In this day and age, with increased training requirements and free time being important to everyone Fire Departments nationwide are struggling with the problems of not only recruiting qualified volunteer firefighters, but keeping the ones that they have on board so they can maintain a highly trained and experienced volunteer force.  Through the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program our grant award guarantees that the federal government will pick up $426,908 over the next four years so that we can move one of our existing Lieutenants into a role where he will be responsible for not only evaluating and improving our current volunteer program but also being a dedicated employee for any volunteer interaction within our system. 

New Volunteer Coordinator Lt. Tad Buckingham

On September 24, 2012 the Forest Grove City Council authorized a supplemental budget appropriation so that Fire Chief Michael Kinkade could move longtime FGF&R Lieutenant Tad Buckingham into this new Volunteer Coordinator role effective October 1st.  Lieutenant Buckingham has worked for the Forest Grove Fire Department full time since 1996, after being hired out of our volunteer program where he started in the 1986 while he attended Pacific University, he is recognized as a natural fit for this role as he was already responsible for our College Intern Firefighters and his communication and interaction with current volunteers was highly regarded.  This grant allows us to fully fund a new position, and does not take away from our existing budget, so through a competitive promotional process Forest Grove Fire & Rescue will be promoting Firefighter Keith Baas to the rank of Lieutenant where he will be assigned to a 24 hour shift to replace the position that Lieutenant Buckingham previously held.  The new Lieutenant Baas is a 1999 graduate of Forest Grove High School and started as a volunteer firefighter with our agency in 2000.  He was hired full time in 2006 and is well respected amongst our staff and volunteer firefighters.  In the coming weeks the City of Forest Grove will be holding a competitive process to hire a full time entry level firefighter to fill the position that Lieutenant Baas was holding previously.

New Shift Lieutenant Keith Baas

“We are very grateful to the Department of Homeland Security for this grant, and excited to move Tad into the Volunteer Coordinator role, his personality, background, and approachability make him a great person for this position” said Fire Chief Michael Kinkade adding “As our community evolves it is becoming harder and harder for combination fire departments like ours to find and keep dedicated volunteers.  Our hope is that Tad can hit the ground running and not only evaluate our current volunteer model, but consider outside the box ideas to enhance our program and promote the spirit of volunteerism in Forest Grove and throughout the fire services in Western Washington County”. 

FIRE DEPARTMENTS DECLARE ALL OUTDOOR BURNING CLOSED DUE TO FIRE DANGER

Effective immediately, Forest Grove Fire & Rescue and the Cornelius Fire Department will be taking a rare, but proactive step to help prevent a fire tragedy in our community by instituting a total ban on all outdoor burning until further notice.  This total ban goes above and beyond the already in place County wide ban on open agricultural and yard debris burning,
and also closes all outdoor campfires and recreational fires within our response area. Cooking fires in an approved and listed open flame cooking device such as a propane or charcoal fired barbecue grill are exempt from this total burn ban and are still allowed at this time.
 

Due to the long term effects of little to no rain combined with the hot, dry, and windy weather, Fire Officials urge the community to be extra fire safe during these final few weeks until the steady rains arrive again and the burn ban is lifted.  Please do not use machinery or equipment near tall grass or brush, and do not weld or perform other hot work outdoors at this time. It’s also recommended that if you do any work outdoors that you have a properly maintained and easily accessible fire extinguisher with your machinery, vehicles, and equipment. If you must work outdoors we strongly urge that you perform your work during the morning hours when the humidity is highest. For those in the forestry industry you are required to follow the guidelines set forth by the Oregon Department of Forestry for Industrial Fire Precautions at this time, please contact your local Oregon Department of Forestry Office for further details.
 
For questions please contact your local Fire Department Administration Office. Forest Grove Fire & Rescue can be reached at 503-992-3240, and the Cornelius Fire Department at 503-357-3840.

Discarded Cigarette Damages Best Western Hotel

Around 2:45 pm on Sunday (September 16, 2012) afternoon firefighters were called to a fire at the Best Western Hotel located at 3933 Pacific Avenue in Forest Grove.  Dark smoke was billowing into the sky and was visible from blocks away as firefighters arrived on scene and found the fire burning on both floors of an exterior wall of the two story hotel.  Firefighters quickly went to work, and from the outside they were able to rapidly extinguish the bulk of the actively burning fire with their hose streams.  Incident commanders then ordered additional crews into the building to verify that the all guests and staff of the hotel had safely escaped, and that the fire had not spread.  Forest Grove Fire & Rescue deployed their ladder truck which began removing the burnt siding from the building while a crew from Hillsboro Fire & Rescue checked in the attic.  Firefighters found that the fire had indeed spread to the attic, charring a number of truss and roof components there, but that the building's fire sprinkler system had activated in the attic with eight sprinkler heads flowing enough water to stop the spread of fire in the attic at that point.

This was the scene that presented itself to firefighters as they arrived at the Best Western Hotel on Sunday

Fire Investigators determined that the fire, that caused at least $75,000 in damages to the building and its contents, was a result of a discarded cigarette.  Guests and hotel staff reported smelling smoke earlier in the day at which point they checked the hallways and a number of rooms but found nothing out of the ordinary.  One of the hotel housekeepers was outside of the building when she noticed the smoke and she quickly went back into the hotel to help evacuate the dozen or so guests.  Another house keeper ran with a fire extinguisher but the fire was already burning inside the wall space and she was unable to extinguish it at that time.  The area where the fire originated is a bark dust landscaped area surrounding a concrete patio that is the designated smoking area for the hotel.  Fire investigators found bark dust burned deeply underground which along with the reports of a smoky smell from earlier in the day, indicates that a slow burning fire had been going on for quite some time.  The hotel suffered extensive damage from the smoke and firefighting water and is not able to be occupied at this time.  It will likely be quite a few days before the hotel will be fully up and running again, hotel staff are working on finding another hotel in the area for guests at this time.

Volunteers from FGF&R Truck 4 remove siding from the building to verify that the fire has not spread

  

This is just one of many fires in bark dust that has occurred across Washington County over the week.  As the weather continues to remain warm and dry the bark dust used for landscape in our community is tinder dry and doesn't take much to ignite and turn into a smoldering fire that can easily creep into hedges, fences, and as in this case structures.  Please, if you choose to smoke make sure that you discard your cigarettes in a safe area with a non combustible container.  Also, don't hesitate to call 9-1-1 if you smell smoke.  Firefighters have special tools and thermal imaging heat detecting cameras that they can use to help make sure that a potentially dangerous situation is not occurring.