Looking for information on Proposition 1 (Levy Lid Lift)? Here is SE Thurston Fire Authority’s fact sheet about Proposition 1.
Original article at Nisqually Valley News
One structure fire, nine brush fires and 22 total calls accounted for a “top five” busiest 24-hour period for the S.E. Thurston Fire Authority on the Fourth of July, said Fire Chief Mark King.
The structure fire was reported at 203 Jefferson Ave. in Yelm at about 11:15 p.m. on July 4, amounting to a total loss of one man’s garage.
“We don’t have a cause on it yet, however it appears to have started maybe in the rough area so the initial thought was probably some kind of fireworks device that got launched from somewhere, but we don’t have that definitive proof,” King said.
The fire authority got the call at 11:18 p.m., responded in less than five minutes and received mutual aid from Lacey Fire District 3, Bald Hills Fire District 17 and East Olympia Fire District 6, King said.
“It was well-involved when we got there, so it had a pretty good head start before we got there and we are pretty close to Jefferson,” King said.
Firefighters were on the scene until about 1:30 a.m. on July 5. They were able to isolate the blaze to the 1,200-square-foot structure and kept it away from multiple other residences located 50 to 75 feet away.
In an uncharacteristically calm night for the Yelm Police Department, Sergeant Tillman Atkins said officers formed a perimeter around the property, keeping others a safe distance back so the fire authority could complete its work.
“It did not appear that anybody got hurt,” Atkins said. “There was one gentleman that was in his home, an older gentleman that was inside the house that was very hard of hearing, and the fire was getting close to his home from the garage that was on his property. Our officers actually assisted with evacuating him.”
They also went around to neighboring houses and knocked on doors to let people know what was occurring, while advising them to wait a safe distance outdoors.
The structure fire aside, King said the fire district fought nine brush fires as well, many of them believed to be fireworks-related.
“We have no definitive proof, but I would probably say yes,” King said to the question of whether fireworks had a hand in the day’s events. “It’s an extraordinary number of events in one day for us, so given the one factor, which is the dry conditions and fireworks, we’re pretty certain that’s probably a pretty big contributing factor.”
King said he doesn’t necessarily condone a ban on the use of fireworks, but said the natural consequence of such celebrations can result in fires.
“I don’t know if I’d say don’t use them at all, but I’d probably just say that really you don’t think things will catch fire this time of year, but when it’s so dry, they tend to,” he said. “It was just the right combination of things that went wrong.”
And the conditions really were a perfect storm, he said.
“We had the dry weather and we had the state reopening,” King said. “People wanted to get back together, which we understand, and there’s just a lot of celebrations and some of those, unfortunately, caused fires and in one case, an injury. … Somebody had a firework go off and they severely injured their hand.”
He said it was nice seeing people back together after so long apart. To help facilitate the safest gatherings possible, King said the fire authority made certain preparations for the holiday.
“We brought in extra crews and gassed up for it, so it wasn’t a complete shock or overwhelming event. We knew it was going to be busy,” King said.
In the end, King said things could have been a lot worse.
“Overall, the crews were happy that we didn’t lose any more homes and we’re happy we didn’t lose any lives,” King said. “Given what could have happened, with the amount of brush fires that started, none of them got away. We were able to contain them and that’s the important part. It was a long day and night for those crews.”
Thurston County has banned the discharge of consumer fireworks in unincorporated areas of the county after officials determined weather conditions and fire danger levels are too high.
The emergency ban was implemented after discussions with the county’s manager, fire marshal and director of emergency services.
Read the complete article on the Nisqually Valley News here.
Summer is definitely here. With temperatures set to be over 100 degrees this weekend, we would like to remind people to stay safe. Remember that the water is colder than it may look and always wear your life jackets.
For more information about this heat wave, read this article from the Chronicle.
With everyone being home more in the last year, some people started to think more about their health. With that came more sales for in-home workout equipment, such as Peloton’s Tread+ and Tread treadmills.
However, we have some safety and consumer information regarding these machines. Read more about this recall and some of the options available to you if you have/had one of these machines at Cutter Law’s website.
You power your home with energy, but do you know electrical safety? The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that 31,000 home electrical fires occur every year, and with over 180 cases involving electrocution or electricity-related incidents that could have been avoided, home electrical safety is too important to ignore. At Constellation, we care about the safety of our customers, and by following these electrical safety tips you can protect your home and your family.
Read more here.
Summer is coming and the weather is warming up. It’s the time of year when everyone wants to get out on the water for a day of fun. Don’t forget about safe boating, though. Safety is important, so advanced planning and proper boater education are important.
See more information on King 5 News.
We will be asking voters to renew our general M&O (Maintenance and Operations) Levy to $1.50 Per Thousand in August of 2021. This means that, on a $400,000 home, that equates to a $4.00 a month increase. Our levy was last restored in 2016 by the voters.
SE Thurston Fire Authority covers 129 sq miles and serves a population of approx. 35,802 citizens in Yelm, Rainier, the Lake Lawrence community, and the surrounding unincorporated area. SE Thurston Fire Authority continues to see a large increase in growth, which equates to increased requests for service. Over the past 5 years, SE Thurston Fire Authority has seen requests for service increase by over 10%.
2021 is on pace to see another 5% increase in requests for service. The cost to operate has increased in the past 5 years by over 20%. 98% of SE Thurston Fire Authority’s revenue comes from the general M&O levy. Funds from this levy renewal will be used to maintain our current levels of service.
