Brian Schaeffer Fire Chief

here with a friendly reminder to properly dispose of your Christmas tree. Soon. Although Christmas tree fires are not common when they do occur, they are more likely to be serious.

As you are taking down your Christmas lights, make sure to check for any frayed or damaged wires.

As you take down your Christmas lights, check for any frayed or damaged wires.

Piles of snow, extremely cold weather, and ice combine to make the job of a firefighter very difficult. Engine 3 made a quick stop of a car on fire in their neighborhood.

Engine and Ladder 1A protecting property owned by our community partners Martin Luther King Jr. Family Outreach. Unfortunately, a frozen pipe burst from the deep freeze and quick warm-up yesterday. It's been a long day for all of them.

SFD has responded to more than 60 calls in the past 48 hours involving broken sprinklers, burst water pipes, and resulting water flow alarms. These incidents result from the long freeze Spokane had experienced over the past week and the sudden warm-up on December 24th.

Therefore, I strongly encourage business owners and property managers who have yet to go to their office, shop, or warehouse this weekend to check for possible water damage today.

If you discover a burst pipe at your home or business, please do NOT call 911 unless there is a life-safety threat (e.g., water close to electrical systems, potential collapse involving multiple floors, etc.). Please take these steps as soon as possible:

- Locate your main water supply and shut it off.
- Turn on your faucets to drain all remaining water.
- Use towels to mop up water
- If you are a renter, call your landlord or property manager
- Try to find the source of the water; if you identify the location of the break, plumbers can work more efficiently.
- Notify your neighbors. They may be experiencing similar conditions.
- Take photos and call your insurance company.

If community members are unsure of the life-safety risk or cannot control the situation with the actions above, calling 911 is appropriate. Fire Department resources will respond and help where possible.

During this time of the year, we like to focus on gratitude. We are extremely grateful for all of you, to be part of this community and to serve our city to the best of our ability. From our family to yours, we wish each of you a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Merry Christmas Eve, Spokane. Murphy, retired mascot from our training center, decided to pop up on your feed with some holiday cheer. He is full of suggestions for Saturday smiles. Perhaps a roll in the snow, followed by a couple chomps of snow? (another Murphy favorite). Whatever your day has in store, do something today that makes you smile.

Thanks to the unsung heroes of every weather event we have in our region... The National Weather Service-Spokane! You can follow them on Facebook US National Weather Service Spokane Washington () and on the web at https://www.weather.gov/otx/ The Arctic Blast is definitely here.

Spokane Fire's Elf, Safety Simon, reminds the community to water their Christmas tree daily. And remember to unplug your tree lights before leaving your home or going to bed.

It is chilly Spokane. If this cold spell has you digging for your space heater, remember space heaters need space. December, January, and February are the peak months for heating fires. Space heaters are the most common cause of home heating equipment fires. (Source National Fire Protection Association).

Keep an eye out for festive firetrucks around the city this week. Our small way of spreading holiday cheer!

Very Festive Station 11... Well done!

I am so thankful for this guy; Lieutenant Timmy Groe has been responsible for carrying the SFD Holiday tradition for several years. He knocked it out of the park :-) this year. Last Friday, the SFD Family was treated to the legacy of experiencing the magic of the Riverfront Park Carrousel.

Timmy is passing the responsibility to Brendan Craig for 2023.

Thank you both for the leadership!

From our family to yours, Happy Hanukkah, Spokane.

Winter is here. We are in for an exceptionally cold week. Plan accordingly, and check on the vulnerable people in your life. As always, if you need us we'll be there.

We've been saying it for a while now. It's gonna be a very cold week across the Inland Northwest!

And that's a wrap!

During the last month, our SFD grade school fire safety instructors have been busy. We've spent 20 days in area elementary schools, delivering structured fire safety lessons to 77 (seventy-seven) 1st-4th grade classes in the City of Spokane.

“Pearl Harbor Day” remembers the attack on Pearl Harbor on 12/7/41. There were 188 U.S. aircraft destroyed, 2,402 personnel were killed, and 1,282 were wounded. We remember them all from “The Greatest Generation,” who served along with all those who continue to do today, including the Honolulu FD and Hawaii’s Federal FD Firefighters.

As the Hickam Field firefighting apparatus was knocked out, Honolulu Fire companies responded to assist with the fires. At 0826, a Japanese aerial bomb was dropped on crews from HFD Engine Companies 1, 4, and 6.

3 Firefighters, Captain John Carreira, Captain Thomas S. Macy, and Hoseman Harry T.L. Pang, were killed in the Line of Duty. An additional 6 were wounded from shrapnel. They were Honolulu Fire Lieutenant Fred Kealoha, Hoseman Moses Kalilikane, Hoseman John A. Gilman, Hoseman Solomon H. Naauao, Hoseman Patrick J. McCabe, and Hoseman George Correa.

In 1944 they all were awarded the Order of the Purple Heart. They are the only civilian Firefighters to have ever received this award. (From Billy Golfeder)

I love to share feedback from the community, especially when they call out are people! Check out this letter from a recipient of the Community Risk Reduction Efforts in their neighborhood recently. Thanks to everyone that contributed that weekend and the days of preparation leading up to the Smoke Alarm Install Weekend!

We need your help! As you are shoveling out in the coming days, please adopt a hydrant and keep a 3-foot snow-free zone around it. In the case of a fire, firefighters need access to hydrants quickly. A couple minutes of your time could help save a life and property in a fire emergency.

Before a hearing, I caught Jeff Bollinger, Eric Thompson, and Jeff Humphrey. Shhh, take a moment and observe these 3 wild journalists in their native and natural habitat :-) These 3 collectively have over 70 years of journalism experience and storytelling through media. Thanks for supporting and distributing our messages guys!

Please consider sharing your with the SFD Foundation. The SFD Foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to saving lives by improving and supporting the SFD's community risk reduction. Through fundraising, advocacy, and collaboration, we support critical programs and initiatives that significantly impact the number of lives saved and injuries prevented by the efforts of our Fire Department. The Foundation helps to enable our people serving in the Operations, Training, and Prevention Division daily through targeted investments in areas where the SFD's budget runs short, as well as innovative programs that provide immediate help to community members in crisis. Please consider donating today!

Pay Spokane Fire Department Foundation using PayPal.Me Go to paypal.me/SFDFoundation and type in the amount. Since it’s PayPal, it's easy and secure. Don’t have a PayPal account? No worries.

Snow is here. Friendly reminder to shovel walkways. Be a good neighbor.

We have to be operationally ready for all risks, regardless of location. A good example of this premise is a recent collision on Friday at East 29th Avenue/South Southeast Blvd around 10AM. The location is a residential street, low-speed limit, and is fairly well-traveled. Surprisingly, an erratic small vehicle driver with estimated speeds over 65mph drove into a sign splitting his car in half. Indeed, in half. Less than 2-minutes away is a fire station with a four-person staffed Paramedic Quint with the capability to extricate/rescue victims and treat their injuries. We are incredibly fortunate to live in a community that supports maintaining this capability for community members when they have their worst days. Whether the emergency is medical (from neonate to geriatric), fire, rescue, or special ops--we are operationally ready.

On Wedneday, I went to a call with Quint 11D. They responded to East 27th Ave/South Southeast Blvd to a report of a patient with his hand trapped under a car. The car was on a hill, on an ice-covered road and had a flat tire. A helpful citizen stopped to assist the owner with removing the flat using the car's jack. Unfortunately, a combination of terrain, ice and lack of light contributed ot the jack failing and the car landing on the citizen. The Quint observed patient's hand was trapped between the wheel well of a vehicle and the partially removed tire. They immediately chocked the vehicle and lifted it with hydraulic spreaders while cribbing to capture progress. The patient's hand was extricated once the car was lifted, approximately 1 inch.

This is pretty routine, but my favorite part of the story is that Quint 11's crew changed the tire, tightened the lug nuts, and lowered the car for the owner allowing her to travel to a repair shop. The victim received great care and pain control by SFD and AMR Paramedics and was transported to definitive care. Thanks for another great job Q11D.

We are retiring this Fire Safety House after 30 Years of Service 1993-2022...

For the last 30 years, the Children's Fire Safety House (CFSH) has toured area elementary schools teaching over 54,000 kids about fire safety. Thanks to our community's investment in fire safety, we are excited to share that big changes are coming. Stay tuned.

From our family to yours, we wish you a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.

Coffee. A firefighter's best friend.
Happy National Expresso Day.
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The highest form of knowledge is empathy-it demands we remove our biases and egos to occupy another's life experience (adapted from Plato). Hunger, loneliness, mental illness, and untreated medical problems are the reality for many in our community. This holiday, please , offer help, and support local organizations that are on the ground helping improve lives throughout the City.

Future Firefighters in the making.
spent the day with Spokane Public Schools 5th graders at the SPS Career Fair. It’s never too early to start working toward a career in the fire service. Recruiting starts early.

This week, the City of Spokane Fire Department is conducting hands-on training with the Handtevy - Pediatric Emergency Standards, Inc. system. This system is a state-of-the-art system of information and tools that help EMS personnel care for seriously sick and injured children. Serious and life-threatening incidents that involve children are low-frequency, high-stress cases for prehospital EMS providers. This system provides the foundational elements to reduce stress and allows the EMS providers to quickly access essential drug dosages, equipment, and protocols on the scene to optimize the care delivered to children.

When we respond to a fire, we follow a set of procedures and search everywhere. We do not advocate stickers on doors. They are neither reliable nor trusted. You should have adequate and tested smoke alarms, know two ways out from your space, close your doors before you go to sleep, and practice your escape with everyone in the family. Those actions together improve your survival greatly from a residential fire. No sticker has that level of empowerment.

Keep Halloween safe with tips from NFPA.

*Use glow sticks or battery-operated candles for decorations.
*Flashlights and glow sticks are great additions to costumes.
*Teach children to avoid open flames, including jack-o’-lanterns with candles.
*Remember to keep exits clear of decorations.
*Do NOT accept any candy that is unwrapped, or suspicious.

A late shout-out and thank you to SFD's Amanda Winchell for representing us at the City of Spokane's accommodated employee fair.

BC Bruner and Engine 4 today at a trash fire on South Lincoln that was called in as a commercial.

Great stuff Ladder 1!