Worker Injured by Farm Equipment

Earlier today around 11:35am, Forest Grove Firefighters were dispatched to an Industrial Accident located on NW Strohmayer Road, North of Forest Grove. When crews were responding they got word that a farm worker had gotten his hand severely injured in a walnut harvester while working in the orchard about 700 feet away from the closest address. Crews arrived to find other workers providing first aid care to the injured coworker. Firefighters treated and stabilized the patient for transport by Metro West Ambulance to a local trauma hospital.

After speaking with coworkers, it was found that while sweeping up the walnuts the debris removal fan became clogged. At that point the worker tried to clear the debris and for an unknown reason the internal fan struck their hand. They were able to remove the workers hand easily and no specialized rescue equipment was needed.

Forest Grove Fire & Rescue wants to remind everyone that whenever using motorized equipment to always turn off the device completely before doing any kind of work or adjustment to it. Whether it is a small chain saw for yard work or large piece of farm equipment in a field, always have safety in mind.

FIREFIGHTER'S CHRISTMAS TOY DRIVE DATES

I know, we haven't even had Halloween yet, and we should be celebrating one holiday at a time right, so what is this blog post doing talking Christmas? We'll keep it brief but believe it or not we have actually been planning our annual Christmas Toy Drive since June, and October is when we typically get people in our community asking for help during the holidays and we wanted to get a few of the important dates out to you now so families could plan for the season and know what to expect.

NOVEMBER 1, 2011

Applications for families requesting assistance this year will be available starting November 1st. You can stop by the fire station and fill out an application in person or you can find applications on our Facebook and Twitter pages as well as on the City of Forest Grove website. Completed applications can be turned in to the Forest Grove or Cornelius Fire Stations during normal business hours beginning Tuesday November 1, 2011, and the application period will run until Friday, December 16, 2011. If you can't make it to the fire stations during normal business hours you can also call our "Toy Drive Hot line" at 503.992.3184 and leave a message with your family information.

November 21, 2011

Starting the week of November 21st donation bins will be out at the Forest Grove and Cornelius Fire Stations as well as local businesses where toys and non perishable food donations can be dropped off.

December 16, 2011

On December 16, 2011 the application period for this year's project closes. That doesn't necessarily mean that if you come in after the 16th that you won't be able to receive assistance, if we have remaining toys left over we will of course continue to help out. Families who ask for help after December 16th, just have less of an opportunity to have their requests filled as our supply of toys decreases when we fill baskets.

December 16 - 23, 2011

Firefighters will begin filling gift baskets on or around December 16th and we hope to have all orders ready to be picked up at your local fire station by no later than December 23rd. We will call you when your order is ready, gift baskets can be picked up on those days during normal business hours which are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The Conference Room at Station 4 filled up with donated toys last year

As always, this project is provided by private donations and is first come first serve for families in the Forest Grove and Cornelius Community. We will make every effort to help as many families as possible, but our ability to do so will depend on how many toys or donated items that we receive. Last year our project served over 300 families and nearly 1,000 children in the Forest Grove and Cornelius community and we didn't have to turn anyone away, our goal is to do the same in 2011.

FIRE PREVENTION WEEK AND OPEN HOUSE

October 9th through the 15th is the National Fire Prevention Week and is the traditional chance for firefighters nationwide to get out and visit with their community and spread the fire safety message. Forest Grove was no different, as firefighters visited classrooms and held the annual Open House event on Saturday October 15th to wrap up the festivities.

After fundraising during the spring and summer months we were able to purchase special fire safety work books for the students in our elementary schools. These work books are what our firefighters used when they visited Joseph Gale, Harvey Clarke, and Dilley Elementary Schools during the week of October 9th. All told around 1,000 kids heard our fire safety message that week with everything from firefighters dressed in full protective gear visiting kindergarten and first grade classrooms, to firefighters working closely with students in the 2nd through 4th grade to give them more personal attention and help them through the work book. These special work books were funded through the National Fire Safety Council's Fire Pup Program and were created with age appropriate lessons covering everything from what firefighters do in our community to safety tips to use at home. While at the schools the firefighters didn't just help out in the classroom, they stayed for lunches with the kids and recess fun as well and played a number of pretty intense "wall ball" games during the week!

At the end of the week our Open House was held that showcased not just firefighters, but just about every public service that our neighbors depend on was on hand to share their programs and meet our guests. Forest Grove was well showcased with attendees from Light and Power, Forest Grove Police, The Forest Grove Library, Forest Grove Public Works, and our Parks and Recreation Departments on hand. Our friends from the Washington County Sheriff's Office were also there, as were Clean Water Services, and Metro West Ambulance. We unfortunately were not able to get Lifeflight out for this year's event because of heavy foggy weather at their home station, but that didn't stop over 700 people from stopping by our Forest Grove Station and taking a fire engine ride or going up over 70 feet into the air above downtown in the Light and Power Bucket Truck!

Special thanks to these local businesses and individuals for helping support us and donating money to the Fire Pup Program that provided work books for this year's Fire Prevention Week:

• Forest Grove Kiwanis



• Kem's Woodworking LLC



• Tom & Raean Johnston



• WSC Inc.



• American Legion Post #2



• Ireland & Ireland PC



• TF Draper Company



• Church of Jesus Christ



• Don Hunker



• VanDyke Seed Co.



• Thomas Alexander DDS



• Knights of Pythias



• Forest Grove Beehive



• 7-Eleven



• Forest Grove Grange



• The Homestead Community



• Holbrooke Lodge #30



• David Hill Vineyards



• A&J Electric



• Grand Lodge AF & AM of Oregon



• Ace Hardware
  
  

Halloween Costumes and Safety

This time of year the local retail stores are full of Halloween costumes and the kids are already planning what version of movie character, scary monster, or cute little princess is going to help them get the most candy this year. Halloween is one of the biggest holidays of the year for kids and as parents we want them to be able to go out there and have fun, but we also want our little ones to be safe while they trick or treat. So what can you do as a parent to help make sure that your child has a safe Halloween this year?

It all starts with the costume, and you want to choose a costume that has certain safety features. Look for costumes, wigs, and masks that have a fire resistant label - fire resistant does't mean that the costume can't burn, but it does mean that it should resist burning and should be able to be extinguished easily if it does catch on fire. Along with flame resistance you should look for a costume that isn't too baggy or too long; this can help prevent not only accidently catching the costume on fire from a candle or lamp, but it can also help your child move easier and not trip over the costume. Fit is also important when it comes to the shoes the kids will wear, trick or treating in mom's heels can be a real problem for little feet so choose good fitting shoes that are warm, dry, and comfortable for the child. With Halloween comes earlier sunset and time spent out after dark so making sure that your child's costume has some reflective material to help them be seen at night is very important. You can add things like reflective fabric strips or decals to the costume or candy buckets to help motorists see your little trick or treater easier in low light or dark conditions. Another great idea to help when it gets dark is to use glow sticks on the costume, and have the child carry a flashlight with them that is turned on at all times while they are walking.



It's not all about the costume though, check out our blog again during the week before Halloween for more tips about how to trick or treat safely on Halloween night.

It's Fire Prevention Week

October 9th through the 15th is National Fire Prevention Week. Forest Grove Firefighters will be kicking off the week long celebration of fire safety with visits to some of the elementary schools in our area. During these visits students will have a chance to meet the firefighters as they will be spending time in their classrooms, as well as having lunch and recess with the kids. While at the schools we will be spending approximately 20 to 30 minutes in each classroom where we will be reading fire safety stories with the kindergartners and first graders, and helping the second, third, and fourth graders with special fire safety lessons. Every student will receive a fire safety work book that they can work on in class and take home to show their parents and reinforce the special safety messages that the firefighters shared with them during the school day. Here's our school visit schedule for Fire Prevention Week:

• Monday October 10 Joseph Gale Elementary School
  


• Tuesday October 11 Joseph Gale Elementary School
  


• Wednesday October 12 Harvey Clarke Elementary School
  


• Thursday October 13 Dilley Elementary School

All of this will culminate with the always popular Fire Station and Public Service Open House which will be held on Saturday October 15th at the Forest Grove Fire Station. This event will run from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. and will include things from not just the firefighters but just about every public service agency that works to keep Forest Grove going will have special information or equipment at the Open House. Our guests at the Open House will include Forest Grove Police, Washington County Sheriff's Office, Metro West Ambulance, Lifeflight Network, Forest Grove Light and Power, Forest Grove Public Works, Clean Water Services, Forest Grove Library Services, and the Forest Grove Parks and Recreation Department. There will be countless activities for kids and adults alike including fire engine rides, static displays of vehicles and equipment, aerial lift rides in the Light and Power bucket truck, and if the weather permits a special visit from Lifeflight when they land in our parking lot. Also at the Open House you are welcome to tour the fire station and visit our newly updated Fire Museum which showcases the 117 year history of firefighting in Forest Grove and includes our newest exhibit of the three foot long I-beam from the collapsed World Trade Centers on 9/11/01.

What can you do to get involved with Fire Prevention Week at home?

• Install smoke alarms in areas where people sleep and on each level of the home. Replace all of your existing smoke alarms that are over ten years old with new ones, and test all of your smoke alarms monthly.


• Practice a home fire drill with your family. Test your smoke alarm and have your children practice two ways out of the home and meeting at a family meeting place like a tree or mailbox outside of the home.


• Hunt for home hazards like extension cords, things left too close to heaters, or matches and lighters that are left out.


• Make sure that you have an ABC rated fire extinguisher available in the kitchen and that it is fully charged and accessible quickly in an emergency.

Fall Backyard Burn Season

It's October and that means the return of the backyard burning season in and around Forest Grove. The fall burn season will run from October 1st until December 15th, but not every day is an open burning day. Daily, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality determines if burning will be allowed based on air quality observations. To find out if burning is allowed in our area call 503.992.3242 after 8:00 a.m. for the day's burning information.

Before you burn remember that backyard burning is for yard debris only. This means you may burn things like small piles of limbs, and other landscaping debris from around your property. Backyard burning is not for large land clearing piles, construction debris, or plastics and garbage. But what if you live outside of the city, does that automatically make you eligible for agricultural burning? Not quite, actually agricultural burning is for farmers and nurseries only and only allows them to burn the debris from their agricultural operations. For instance a farmer who has a hazelnut orchard may burn limbs from his orchard and be considered agricultural burning, where if he burned pruning from the hedge around his farm house that would be considered back yard burning.

If you have any questions about backyard burning and what it means in Forest Grove feel free to call our office at 503.992.3240. To report an illegal burn please call the DEQ directly at 503.229.5393. We ask that you call the DEQ and not the Fire Department for smoke complaints because the Fire Codes do not regulate smoke complaints in our community.

SEMI-TRUCK TANKER ROLLS OVER ON NW MARTIN ROAD

Forest Grove and Cornelius Firefighters were called to the scene of a semi truck rolled over on NW Martin Road around 2:00 pm this afternoon. When crews arrived on scene a passing motorist was inside the cab of the crashed semi holding the unconscious truck driver up and preventing further injury. Crews had to use ladders to access the cab of the vehicle and remove the driver who was transported to the trauma center at Legacy Emmanuel Hospital in Portland for treatment. The semi truck had no signs visible to initially identify it’s cargo but a Forest Grove Police Officer crawled into the cab of the truck to find identification papers that indicated that the semi-truck was pulling a trailer that was full of a chemical called magnesium hydroxide at the time of the accident.

Firefighters evaluated the trailer and found that though it was damaged it was not leaking and after consulting with the regional hazardous materials response team determined that there was no threat to the public or the environment. There was however a small diesel fuel spill from the fuel tanks of the semi that firefighters cleaned up on scene and also made a small dam in the ditch to prevent diesel from getting into the rest of the road drainage system. NW Martin Road was closed for approximately two hours while crews worked to remove the injured driver and right the flipped over semi truck and trailer.