Seven Fire Districts of Rural Mendocino County (June 28, 2005)

This staffing includes nine EMTS and two first responders. 7. The geographic isolation of Covelo creates problems in training EMTS and volunteer firepersons. The problem is compounded by volunteer inability to devote time to travel and training while committed to fulltime employment. /05 County of Mendocino Grand Jury Post Office Box 629 Ukiah, CA 95482 (707) 463-4320 HOPLAND VOLUNTEER FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT HOPLAND VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Specific Findings 1. The Hopland Volunteer Fire Department (HVFD) protects an area of 350 square miles and a population of approximately 1,400. 2. Water supplies for the HVFD are provided by the municipal district to 72 hydrants and to Department storage tanks. 3. HVFD has the equipment necessary to accomplish its mission, but much of the equipment is old and in need of replacement. The Department has only one 22 year old water tender and it is in need of major repairs. 4. Although HVFD is authorized to carry 30 volunteer firefighter positions, only 17 of these positions are currently filled. From December to April, the Department carries four salaried positions, three fulltime and one part-time. 5. HVFD members, trained by in-house and off-site instructors, must sometimes pay for their own training. 6. Because the District has an arrangement with the CDF and has been working and training in CDF space for several years, the HVFD must comply with CDF standards. /05 County of Mendocino Grand Jury Post Office Box 629 Ukiah, CA 95482 (707) 463-4320 LONG VALLEY FIRE DISTRICT LAYTONVILLE FIRE DEPARTMENT Specific Findings 1. The Laytonville Fire Department (LFD) protects an area of 250 square miles and a population of approximately 3500. 2. Water supplies for the LFD are provided by a hydrant system which extends for two to three miles from the firehouse; water is supplied by the Laytonville Water District. 3. The LFD owns the most up-to-date equipment of the seven surveyed districts. For example, the Department’s oldest engine was built in 1989. 4. The LFD has 32 members, two salaried and 30 volunteers, including a chaplain. The department has two ambulances; the volunteers include four paramedics. 5. The LVFD is supported by a $120,000 tax base. 6. The LFD offers an EMT class onsite annually to which other County districts send their volunteers. The District also offers a community classroom at the station in which interested high school students spend a class period learning the tasks and responsibilities of fire service. /05 County of Mendocino Grand Jury Post Office Box 629 Ukiah, CA 95482 (707) 463-4320 POTTER VALLEY COMMUNITY SERVICES DISTRICT POTTER VALLEY VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Specific Findings 1. The Potter Valley Volunteer Fire Department (PVVFD) protects an area of 275 square miles and a population of approximately 2000. 2. Water supplies for the PVVFD are provided by a hydrant with generator backup located at the firehouse and supplied by a well. 3. A water tender holding 5000 gallons is a PVVFD standby water source. 4. PVVFD has the equipment necessary to accomplish its mission, but much of the equipment is old and in need of replacement. 5. The PVVFD is a 100% volunteer district; the 21 members include a chief, two assistant chiefs, four active EMTS and one paramedic, and four volunteers who are also CDF employees. Two Junior firemen (cadets) also serve the district. 6. PVVFD volunteer training includes Swift Water Rescue training for Russian and Eel River incidents. /05 County of Mendocino Grand Jury Post Office Box 629 Ukiah, CA 95482 (707) 463-4320 REDWOOD VALLEY-CALPELLA FIRE DISTRICT Specific Findings 1. The Redwood Valley-Calpella Fire District (RVCFD) protects an area of 60 square miles and a population of approximately 7800. 2. Water supplies for the RVCFD are provided by 110 hydrants in Redwood Valley and 38 in Calpella; water is supplied by three water districts and various private water sources. These sources are primarily on the Valley floor; few are in the rural or foothill areas. 3. RVCFD has sufficient equipment to accomplish its mission, but much of the equipment is old and in need of replacement. For example, the mutual aid wildland1979 Ford Type 3 pumper is no longer reliable enough to be taken on out-of-County Strike Teams. 4. The RVCFD has 26 members; of these, three are salaried, 16 are volunteers, and seven are cadets. 5. The RVCFD’s recently purchased water tender was funded by the volunteers, private donations, and a grant through the Sho-Ka-Wah casino in Hopland. 6. The RVCFD has converted a retired ambulance into a mobile compressed air support to refill firefighters’ portable air tanks at the scene of an incident. /05 County of Mendocino Grand Jury Post Office Box 629 Ukiah, CA 95482 (707) 463-4320 PIERCY FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT PIERCY VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT Specific Findings NOTE: The Piercy Fire Protection District, supporting a 100% volunteer Fire Department, was formed in 1956 when three lumber mills were flourishing in the area. On January 1, 2004, the Department was no longer a viable entity: OSHA specifications could not be met, the Chief retired and two of the remaining volunteers resigned. Residents of this bedroom community in northern Mendocino County, while they do not seem willing to pay additional taxes, continue to be hopeful that their District can support an active Fire Department in the near future. 1. The Piercy Volunteer Fire Department (PVFD) protected an area of 98 square miles and a population of approximately 290. 2. Water supplies for the PVFD were provided primarily by the South Fork of the Eel River and landowner’s private reservoirs when available. PVFD also had access to the hydrants in Richardson’s Grove. Two of three storage tanks in the district are presently unusable. 3. The PVFD owns a 1972 Chevrolet Type I 1200 gallon pumper and a 1978 Dodge one ton 4x4 wildlands truck. Two International engines obtained through the Federal Excess Program had to be returned following the collapse of the Department. The Department also has eight sets of turnout gear that do not meet OSHA requirements. 4. The PVFD has, at present, no members. After recent recruiting efforts by the Interim Chief and the two remaining Fire Commissioners, fifteen residents expressed an interest in joining a reconstituted PVFD. 5. There is, at present, $15,000 in the District Funds account in the State Controller’s office in reserve for the Piercy Fire Protection District. Piercy receives $8000 annually from the County from which various fees and expenses are deducted. /05 County of Mendocino Grand Jury Post Office Box 629 Ukiah, CA 95482 (707) 463-4320 COMMENTS In a State as huge and geographically diverse as California, fire protection services range from well-trained, well-paid urban districts using state of the art equipment to rural, 90% to 100% volunteer districts struggling for time and funds to train members and searching for ways to replace aging, outmoded equipment. Much of Mendocino County is served by the latter, many caught in an economic “perfect storm” as they attempt to protect their communities. Even as retirees flock to the County and developers rush to meet the demands of the second home market, the cost of firefighting equipment increases, potential volunteers see jobs decline and home prices soar, and the State imposes additional training hours and mandated services on rural fire districts. The portion of property taxes allotted to rural fire districts has not increased since1956, although the cost of district operations continues to rise. While some fortunate districts receive endowments and gifts from members of the community, others write and rewrite grant requests, raffle patchwork quilts, and pray that the annual district barbeque will attract paying customers from beyond their boundaries into the outlying areas. It is estimated that a rural fire district in our County of between 20-25 volunteers and an annual budget of between $75,000-$85,000 is equal to the cost of one fully equipped journeyman firefighter employed by the San Francisco Fire Department. The volunteer, who may well hold a full time job and cherish time with his/her family, must also manage on-call and training hours and State mandated services to public buildings in addition to dwellings, small businesses and wildlands. Volunteer EMTS may be called to the scene of a midnight heart attack or a vehicle accident on State 101, State 1 or any of the myriad of winding, deteriorating County roads. Mendocino County residents would surely agree with the thought that one of the finest ways to serve your community is to join their volunteer fire department. Thousands of us depend on rural fire districts for our safety, our health and the integrity of our communities. The Grand Jury recommends that both State and County governments serve these districts as fairly and faithfully as these districts serve their residents. Response Required Mendocino County Board of Supervisors /05 County of Mendocino Grand Jury Post Office Box 629 Ukiah, CA 95482 (707) 463-4320 Response Requested Chairman, Local Agency Formation Commission President, Mendocino County Fire Chief’s Association Mendocino County Safety Officer Director, Mendocino County Department of Building and Planning Mendocino County Unit Manager, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection Chief, Little River Fire Department Chief, Covelo Volunteer Fire and Ambulance Service Chief, Hopland Fire Department Chief, Long Valley Fire District Chief, Potter Valley Volunteer Fire Department Chief, Redwood Valley-Calpella Fire District Interim Chief, Piercy Fire Department /05