Firefighters News - March 2019
West County fire department's 3rd Annual Emergency Preparedness Fair, 4/6 10am-2pm
R U Ready? Please join your West County fire departments and allied agencies learning how to be ready for the next disaster. This is our third annual fair and great opportunity to prep! Plan on meeting your local healthcare and emergency providers. There will be fire engines and jumpees for the kids… Free coffee from the Red Cross… Free gifts for those who visit the different booths! Last year, over 200 people took advantage of this great opportunity to get prepared.
Graton Fire station
3750 Gravenstein Hwy North
Sebastopol
Saturday, 4/6, 10am-2pm
Bodega Fire
Last month we held an appreciation dinner for our volunteer firefighters and 40 core community supporters. Since 1949 Bodega Volunteer Fire Department has served the community. In 2018, our dedicated 17 volunteers responded to 189 calls for service. The average first responding unit had 3 volunteer firefighters with an average response time of 4 minutes. Our volunteers range from 2 years of service to 33 years of service and vary from local neighbors who just want to help their community to full time firefighters who dedicate time on their days off. Our department is 100% volunteer and operates with no dedicated fire tax. We are grateful to have a new fire station that was completed in 2013 thanks to community donations and support. We have 3 firefighting engines that are less them 10 years old, that over the years, were acquired through a federal firefighting grant program. We thank our community for the support and look forwarded to continuing to serve our residents and visitors for years to come.
Forestville Fire
Our crews have been busy during the recent storms, many areas around Forestville were flooded. We would like to remind people not to attempt to drive on flooded roads, it rarely ends well. Additionally, with the saturated grounds there are falling trees and limbs, do not approach as often live power lines are involved, call the Fire Department immediately for assistance.
We would like to congratulate Volunteer Captain Nick Alberigi for receiving Volunteer of the Year as nominated by the Community. Captain Alberigi has been a dedicated Volunteer for Forestville Fire for over 42 years. He is and has always been an asset to the Fire Department and the community he loves to serve.
Graton Fire
We respond for fires in clothes dryers... and February was no exception. They are caused by a buildup of lint underneath the drum or in the vent. Every year, more than 16,000 fires are sparked by dryers. That accounts for almost 5% of all house fires! While the lint screen captures most of the lint, smaller particles pass through and build up on the bottom of the dryer... and the dryer duct vent. Most people don’t realize that the area underneath the drum is open to the air flow and lint collects here even faster than it collects in the dryer duct. Over time, enough collects to catch fire due to the heating element... whether gas or electric. Check your owner’s manual about the best way to access this area and clean it out (make sure you unplug the dryer first). Also make sure that the dryer duct vent is cleaned regularly – this will save money as clothes will dry faster.
Sebastopol Fire: Open House
Save the Date: Saturday, March 30, 2019
10am-2pm
Sebastopol Firehouse
