Be Seen at Halloween!

There were a dozen or so adults dressed up like firefighters during Forest Grove's downtown Trick or Treat your merchants event this Halloween, but the costumes were pretty realistic. That's because they actually were not costumes at all, they were real firefighters from Forest Grove Fire & Rescue and they were on hand to pass out not only candy, but glow sticks as well.

Thanks to a generous donation from the Forest Grove Firefighter's Association, Forest Grove Firefighter's Union, and the Forest Grove Police Officer's Union we were able to purchase 1,500 glowsticks to share with the trick or treaters. This is all part of our "Be seen at Halloween" project that is intended to help kids get noticed by passing motorists and avoid the tragedy of a trick or treater being hit by a car. Over the course of the two hour event we were able to hand out all of our glowsticks and we are proud to report that no one was struck by a car during Halloween 2010!

Be Safe, Be Seen on Halloween!

Halloween night in Forest Grove is always a fun and enjoyable experience. Thousands of ghouls and goblins flock to the downtown area to trick or treat the merchants, visit the "Hall - O - Safe" at Pacific University, or flood local sidewalks in search of the sugary goodness that fills the orange plastic pumpkin buckets. At the same time it can be a stressful night for drivers as they try and negotiate traffic filled roads at night, in who knows what kind of weather, with all of these "new" pedestrians hitting the streets and sidewalks. According to the child injury prevention group Safe Kids USA, twice as many kids are killed while walking on Halloween than the other 364 days in a year, so can parents do to prevent this tragedy from happening to their little ones? It really all starts with being seen on Halloween!


1. Choose light colored costumes that can be seen in the dark.

2. Consider adding reflective materials to your child's costume. Simple reflective decals can be found at craft stores, or talk to your local fabric shop about reflective material that can be sewn onto your child's costumes. It is amazing how bright these reflective strips are when headlights shine on them.

3. Have your children carry flashlights and glow sticks with them at all times, even if it is still daylight when they start.

4. Walk on sidewalks or established paths, never walk in the street and only cross at marked cross walks with traffic lights. Always look both ways when you cross the street and walk, don't run.

5. Help your kids slow down, it is so easy for them to be excited and rush from place to place, but teaching them to slow down and be alert of what is around them will help them see cars that are backing up or turning.

6. For drivers please be safe, pay attention, slow down, and turn off all distractions. Do not eat or drink in the car, talk or text on the cell phone, and be extra vigilant of kids of all ages.

On Halloween night starting at 4:00 p.m. our firefighters will be in downtown Forest Grove passing out glow sticks to the trick or treaters so that they can be seen at Halloween, and don't forget that even though our Station 4 is off the beaten path downtown we still have candy and would love to have the kids trick or treat the fire station.

Be Safe, Be Seen at Halloween!

Fire Station Open House and Public Service Fair

Last Saturday, Forest Grove Fire & Rescue partnered with departments from all over the City of Forest Grove as well as our friends at the Washington County Sheriff's Office, Metro West Ambulance, and the Lifeflight Network when we hosted the annual Forest Grove Public Service Fair. This event started a few years ago as a way of expanding on the already popular fire prevention week fire station open house so that all public safety and city departments could showcase what they have to offer to the community.

Even though this event definitely catered to the younger at heart, there were still plenty of things to see and do and it was an excellent chance for a one stop shopping experience for everyone to get their questions answered about city services in Forest Grove. On hand during the event were representatives from the Forest Grove Library, Parks and Recreation, Water Department, Public Works, Police, and Light and Power departments. Outside of the umbrella of the City of Forest Grove we also had the Washington County Sheriff Crime Prevention Team, an actual ambulance and crew from the county's private ambulance provider Metro West Ambulance, as well as one of the helicopters from the Lifeflight Network landed at our heli-stop for a few hour visit during the event. Children were able to get rides on our fire engines, could walk inside any number of assorted vehicles from backhoes to helicopters and police cars, and our Light and Power Department would take those without a fear of heights up into the air on a bucket truck ride.

So far the fall weather has been fantastic in NW Oregon and we were lucky enough that it continued one more weekend as we were able to have a sun shine filled, comfortable open house. Combining the outstanding weather, and excellent assortment of things to do and see we think that this year was the best ever for our open house. It was hard to get a good count of attendees but we estimate that over 1,000 visitors came through our fire station for this year's event which was a few hundred more then our typical 500 to 700 guests. We are already planning for Open House 2011, so we hope to see all of you again next year.

It's Fire Prevention Week!

October 3 - 9 marks the annual week that the fire service declares as National Fire Prevention Week. Fire prevention week commemorates the Great Chicago Fire which occur ed started on October 8, 1871 which destroyed much of the city over the course of three days. The first fire prevention week was declared in 1925 by President Calvin Coolidge. Each year the fire service selects a theme so that firefighters all over the United States can remind their communities how to be safe from the perils of fire. This year the national theme is "Smoke alarms, a sound you can live with!"

In Forest Grove we actually take the entire month of October and work specifically with our elementary schools to start this safety message with our youngest audience. In the coming weeks our Fire and Life Safety Division will visit almost all of our K-4 schools in the coming weeks sharing safety information with the kids and answering their questions about firefighters and fire safety. All of this culminates with our annual Public Service and Safety Open House which will be held this year on Saturday October 16th at our Forest Grove Fire Station.

Smoke Alarms, a Sound You Can Live With Safety Tips

• Install smoke alarms inside each bedroom, in the hallway outside the bedrooms, and on each floor of the home. Avoid placing smoke alarms near kitchens and bathrooms where steam and smoke can cause frequent false alarms.
  
  
• Replace your smoke alarms every ten years.
  
  
• Test your smoke alarms monthly and practice a family fire drill when you do. Many kids do not know what to do when they hear their smoke alarm so they react by hiding instead of escaping the home. Teach your kids how to safely get out of the home and meet at the family emergency meeting place.
  
  
• Keep your smoke alarm clean by gently dusting or vacuuming it regularly, if it chirps consider replacing the battery or the entire alarm.

Fall Backyard Burn Season

Friday October 1st is the official kick off for the fall backyard burn season. From October 1st to December 15th the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) allows residents to burn the yard debris from their property. Backyard burning is allowed in and around Forest Grove, however it's not a burning free for all and there are a number of rules that must be followed to avoid a visit from us or a letter in the mail from the DEQ.

First only burn on open burn days. Each day the DEQ tests the air quality in our area and based on this test they will let us know if burning is allowed that day or not. We update the Washington County Open Burning Hotline each morning with this information. You can hear our pre-recorded message by calling 503.992.3242 to see if you can burn that day. It is very important that you burn only on open days during the time limits allowed.

Second, be sure that you are only burning allowed materials. Backyard burning is for yard debris like limbs, clippings, and leaves. You cannot burn items like lumber, garbage, paper, plastics, or tires. Each year there are also questions from people that live in the rural area about agricultural (Ag) burning. Ag burning is for the removal of debris from a farming operation, just because a person may live in the country they are not considered Ag burning by default. For instance a filbert grower who burns the limbs from his orchard is considered to be ag burning but if the same farmer was to burn some hedges that he pulled out from around his home this would fall under the backyard burning requirements instead of those for Ag.

Third be fire safe and a courteous neighbor when you burn. Make sure your pile is dry before you light it off. Smoke complaints are one of the big reasons we get called by angry neighbors so a dry burn pile will help you burn cleaner without putting off a large amount of smoke. Locate your burn pile away from property lines and so that it is well clear of fences, buildings, trees, and anywhere else where you do not want the fire to spread. Constantly attend to your pile while it is burning and have firefighting equipment like a garden hose and hand tools close by to help control the fire. When you are done burning wet down the burn pile and the area around it with water so to be sure that the fire is completely out and will not flare up after you leave it.

We obviously encourage that you choose non burning methods such as composting or the curbside yard debris removal service instead of burning, but we understand that these options are not always good ones for every property owner. For more information check out the Oregon DEQ website about backyard burning by clicking on this link. To report an illegal burn or smoke related complaint please do not call our fire station, instead call 503.229.5393 and report it to the DEQ directly. If a burn pile gets out of hand always call 9-1-1 immediately.

9-11 Memorial in Forest Grove

Even though Forest Grove, Oregon is just about as far away from the east coast of the United States as you can get, we as Americans were all touched by the events of September 11, 2001. For those in the fire service, it was the largest loss of life in the line of duty in one day in the history of our profession. On that tragic day 2,977 innocent Americans were killed in the terrorist attacks in New York, Washington DC, and Pennsylvania. In the City of New York 343 members of the Fire Department New York, and 60 law enforcement officers were killed while trying to serve the people trapped in the buildings of the World Trade Center. September 11, 2001 is regarded as the single most deadly day for firefighters and police officers in the history of the United States.

Last Saturday was the nine year anniversary of the attack on our country and we were joined by firefighters, police officers, current military members and veterans, as well as community leaders from all over western Washington County for a ceremony to remember one of the most significant events of our generation. We gathered alongside about 50 of our community neighbors at the community flag pole on Pacific Avenue in Forest Grove to remember the tragic day that will forever be recognized as a defining moment for the fire service.

Purchase of AED units will provide for better response to cardiac emergencies

In an effort to improve our ability to respond to cardiac emergencies we have recently completed the purchase of six new automated external defibrillators, commonly called AED's, and placed them in service on a number of our emergency vehicles. Prior to this purchase we only had four of these units (three at Station 4 in Forest Grove, and one at Station 7 in Gales Creek) and there were times when all of these could have been tied up on calls so we made it a priority in this year's budget to ensure that we were able to add to our inventory with the total cost of these new devices coming in at $13,800 dollars. In total we now have ten of these life saving tools ready to respond to emergencies in our community.

One of our new Phillips FR2 AED with ECG Units shows a normal heart rythym during testing last week

For the last few years you may have been seeing more and more AED's in the community. You can find them at malls, stores, airports, public swimming pools, offices, and other public places where they are becoming just as commonplace as a fire extinguisher or first aid kit. You really can't fault this either as statistics from the Heart Rhythm Foundation show that there are approximately 325,000 deaths per year from sudden cardiac arrest and that 93 to 95% of sudden cardiac arrest victims die before they even reach the hospital. Studies involving better access to a defibrillator show that the survivability rates increase to 50% or better when an AED is applied within minutes of the event. The Phillips model FR2 AED that we purchased is quite a bit different from the ones you see in public places however, all in a good way. According to our Emergency Medical Services Officer, Paramedic Will Murphy "These are not an AED alone like in the mall, our units have the capability for us to monitor the ECG (electrocardiography) of the patient and get us a better look at what is creating the reason they called 9-1-1."

Our new AED's will also allow us to work more efficiently. According to Murphy "These devices match the current ones that we use so no additional training will be needed, in fact they are able to be used by all certification levels of EMT from the Volunteer Firefighter/First Responder to the career Firefighter/Paramedic." In addition the Phillips FR2 model is compatible with other local area emergency crews so that we will be able to disconnect the cord and plug them directly into the same unit from Metro West Ambulance when they arrive to take the patient to the hospital. One more added benefit for our department is that we can also record data on these so that we can do regular quality control checks on our calls to ensure that we are indeed providing the first class emergency medical care that we would expect.

FGF&R Emergency Medical Services Officer Will Murphy places one of the new AED units on our Engine 423, until last week's purchase this engine did not carry an AED as part of it's normal compliment of equipment

An AED works by analyzing your heart rhythm to determine if an electrical shock is needed to help restart your heart's natural electrical balance. Some AED units that are in public places are truly automatic, meaning that you turn the machine on and a computer voice will tell you exactly how to apply the patches, the machine will then take it from there and deliver electricity as needed automatically. Our AED units are slightly different in that we have to actually push a button to enable them to deliver the electricity needed to "restart" your heart. Still these little machines are the most effective tool out there to help us save a life that has suffered from sudden cardiac arrest. This purchase ensures that every fire engine in our fleet as well as the vehicles driven by our Chiefs and Fire Inspector will carry an AED ready to respond to the needs of the community.