I Wonder?..Hmmmm

Do you have a questIon for the fire department? Ask away, leave us you comments or questions in the comment box. We'll answer them the best we can. If we don't know the answer we'll find it for you or try to anyway.. Remember, be Smart... Be Safe... BE READY! Fire Marshal Bob

HOT SPOTS - 3/30/2012 - 4/6/2012

WOW WHAT A WEEK!
Hello everyone. I hope you had a good week. It proved to be a busy one for the fire guy's and gals. last Friday and Saturday were very busy. High winds Saturday were a challenge for our crews. We had a structure fire late in the morning that was caused by two twelve year old boys playing with illegal fireworks, firecrackers and bottle rockets to be exact. The "two utes" (great line from a movie) were lighting them from an open bedroom window, and were also lighting them by using a paper towel outside. You can guess what happened next. The fire started on the exterior of the home. Instead of calling the fire department the boys decided to try to extinguish it with a garden hose. Fortunately for the boys a neighbor had called 9-1-1 and our guys were on the way. One of the boys took the garden hose into the house and was going to try to keep the fire from spreading into the home..... a problem with his theory was that the garden hose was not hooked up to a spigot.  Oops! About this time Captain Rekoutis and his crew arrived. They quickly deployed lines and got the boy out of the home. Almost as soon as they got him to a safe location, the fire breached the window and was ready to start its work of destruction inside the home. If the fire fighters had not taken quick action this boy would have been in more than just trouble with his dad. Nice Job C shift!

Shortly after 2:00 PM the same day, another structure fire call came in.  As battalion Chief Dean Williams pulled up to the scene it became apparent that this was no ordinary house fire. The fire started in an attached carport/shed and with the help of the wind quickly gained a head of steam and into the home. What made this fire different is that when Chief Williams arrived, not one - but two homes were well involved with fire. He quickly did his size up and Called for a second alarm so we could address both fires. Fortunately everyone was out, and safe from both homes. Crews were able to extinguish both fires in about 30 minutes of aggressive offensive firefighting, followed up by a couple of hours of what we call "overhaul". Investigators worked through the debris but there was so much damage that an exact cause was hard to pinpoint but it does appear to be accidental.

Well these are just a sampling of what went on. There were numerous calls for help this past week. In al the fire department responded on 71 fire or hazardous conditions calls. The medical end of what the fire department does is no exception. Our crews responded to over 190 calls for medical emergencies. This weeks stats don't include any of the Public education, Inspections, training,  and maintenance that our guys do. As you can see the West Valley City Fire Department continues to be one of the busiest departments in the western United States, especially when you break it down to call volume per capita, and man hours.

Hope you enjoy these updates. Remember if you've got a question or comment we'd love to hear from you.

As always,      BE Smart.... Be Safe... BE READY!
                                                                                  Fire Marshal Bob      

Hot Spots 3/25 2012 - 3/28 2012

Ever wonder what the West Valley Fire Department does in a week? Well heres a glimpse.

These stats come from March 25th to March 28 at 5:00 PM. So not a full week by any measure. So far this week we have responded to 
72 calls for medical assistance
23 Calls for fires, Hazardous materials and so on.
Our fire fighters have put in
328 hours of training
156 hours of maintenance.
These dont include any of the inspections, public education programs or other activities.

Wow and this hasen't been an extremely busy week. Just thought it would be intersting to post some iformation of the week. We will continue to do a weekly update on interesting calls and things that go on with the firefighters of West Valley.
Hope you enjoy. If youve got questions or comments drop us an email or leave your question in the comment box. We'd love to hear from you.

Remember "West is Best"

And ....... Be Smart... Be Safe.... BE READY!
                         Fire Marshal Bob

Don't forget the big CHANGE this weekend

Nuff Said

FIRE MARSHAL BOB

Be Smart... Be Safe ... BE READY!!!

West Valley City Structure Fire February 7 2012

West Valley City Utah, Fire fighters make a quick rescue on this house fire. thanks go to West Valley City Fire and West Valley City Police Departments.....Nice work!

Bulldozer Rollover!

West Valley City Utah, January 30, 2102

A heavy equipment operator was critically injured when the bulldozer he was operating went off a 40' drop and rolled. The driver a 50 year old male was thrown from the vehicle as it rolled. The bulldozer ended upright, but a piece of the dozer detached and had the driver partially pinned. When fire fighters arrived they extricated the patient and stabilized him on scene. Air Med was called in to fly the patient to a trauma center. The patient was in very critical condition when he left the scene. Authorities from MSHA were en route to investigate the incident. Remember Be Smart... Be Safe... BE READY! Fire Marshal Bob

January 27, 2012 house fire

West Valley City Utah,  firefighters made a great stop on this house fire. Crews arrived to smoke coming from the front of the residence, and fire venting from the rear of the house. an aggressive offensive attack quickly controlled the fire.  Fortunately everyone got out safely. The culprit for this fire was an occupant that was smoking a cigarette and falling asleep.... never a good combination!




Remember,

Be Smart.... Be Safe....  BE READY!      Fire Marshal Bob

Another day at the Office

Thanks to the men and Women of the West Valley City Fire and Police Departments.

A Day in the Life

A Day in the Life,

Have you ever wondered what a day in the life of a firefighter would be like? Most of us think about these men and women, sitting at a fire station waiting for a call to come in so they’ll have something to do. I remember as a young boy going to visit the fire station with my class from school. It was to small station that was operated by volunteers from our local community. That visit didn’t change my perception as to what they did. A year or so later my father saw smoke rising into the sky, a mile or so from where we lived. We climbed into his car and drove to the scene. We arrived about the same time that the firemen did. I watched as they pulled hose and began to put water onto what was now an inferno. A single engine with two or three volunteers, more and more volunteers began to arrive and soon had the inferno under control and out. From watching these men work I knew event at that young age there was more to it than simply waiting for a call to come in. I began asking a few questions about fire fighters. To my delight I found that my family had a great heritage in the fire service. My mother told me that almost all of her brothers were volunteers with the Heber City Fire Department, in fact my grandfather had actually been the Chief. I looked at my grandfather and uncles in a whole new light. As a youth I was anxious to hear the stories they would tell, I’m sure that these tales got bigger and better every time they were retold. None the less they were still great! I have found that the trend of telling the tales is still a fun way to learn about fire fighters and what they do, and yes they continue to grow in legend and lore each time they are told. Like a fine wine they get better with time.

I thought it would be interesting to share some stories from the life of a firefighter. To give you a glimpse in to the day to day activities that these men and women go through. To let you see how fire fighters are hired and trained. To let you see a day in the life. So check back often as we will compile these stories and update them here.

Thanks to everyone,

remember Be Smart... Be Safe... BE READY!

Where did you park the car??part II

Watch this video where West Valley Fire and Police work to get the driver out of the car, and make sure the house is safe. Thanks to WVCFD, WVCPD and our great building inspectors.