Jayson,

MEET JAYSON: Our crew met him when, at only 5 weeks old, a rare condition caused his heart to stop and his parents called for help.
Jayson had heart surgery to fix the problem and his mom sent us a note to say he's doing just great.
"If it weren't for West Valley Fire Department, my son wouldn't be here today. We will never forget what you guys gave back to us and we are forever grateful."
We'll never forget Jayson. From your friends who met you that scary day, Scott Pearson, Nick Herzog, Matt Butterfield, Phil Lords and Alex Wingeier of Medic Ambulance 74 and Tower 74, we wish you a happy and healthy future!

Fire crews battle an early afternoon fire.

West Valley City fire fighters responded to a house fire at about 12:20 July 11, 2014. (4715 w 3145 s) crews arrived to find a split entry style home well involved in fire.

Crews acted quickly to extinguish the fire. Fortunately no one was at home at the time of the fire. The fire is still under investigation The fire started in the kitchen area.  The stove was found to be the starting point of the fire. No foul play is suspected. Damage to the home is over 100,000.  A family of 6 has been displaced and will be staying with family. There was also a water main break at the fire hydrant that supplied the. First in engine. Fortunately the fire had been extinguished prior to the water break.

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

Fire Marshal Bob

Coming soon......UFO's in the summer sky

Hello everyone, Just a reminder that starting this Tuesday July 1st you might notice some unidentified flying objects in the Utah sky. Not to fear, its just the annual onslaught of fireworks.

It really is a time of celebration as we remember our nations birth. But this celebration comes with some risk when combined with fireworks. So here are just a few reminders and tips.
1. Buy from a reputable dealer.  Don't drive to Wyoming to get your fireworks. If you do you are at risk of bringing in illegal fireworks.
2. Be a good neighbor, fire works are allowed between the hours of 11:00 AM and 11:00 PM, from July 1st - July 7. On the fourth you can shoot them off until midnight. For the days of 47 celebration the dates you can use legal fireworks are July 21st - July 27. The hours are the same for these dates and you can shoot till midnight on the 24th.
3. Still illegal are bottle rockets, firecrackers, M80's, re loadable mortars, and any fire work that has more than 500 grams of powder.
4. Dont be a dud.... Dont combine drinking alcohol and lighting fireworks.
5. Adults be just that ....Adults! Please supervise any child that is around fireworks, by law no one under the age of sixteen is to light or handle the fireworks.
6. Look up before you light! you should have 150 Feet of clearance overhead to safely light fire works. You should also have at least a 30 foot radius around the fireworks display you are doing.
7. Check with your local jurisdiction to see if there are any other restrictions that are in place. Certain locations have banned the use of fireworks in areas that pose a problem. By checking you can avoid most of these problems.
8. When you do light the fireworks make sure that you are shooting from a stable hard surface. Not grass or uneven terrain.
9. Join the bucket brigade. Keep a bucket of water to dunk the discharged  fire works in. Also keep a hose handy. These two items stem a lot of problems.
10. When in doubt... don't!

Be safe have a great summer. The following video is just a brief reminder of most of these tips. Remember Be Smart... BE Safe... BE READY! Fire Marshal Bob

A river runs through it

June 22, 2014 West Valley City, Utah

At about 7:10 on a beautiful Sunday evening something evil lurked just under the surface of the road.
The evil turned out to be a leak in a 24 inch water main. Residents described the initial leak as volcano like, spewing road, water, rocks and debris into the air.  The neighborhood quickly became inundated with water. Fortunately the storm drain system was able to handle the hundreds of thousands of gallons coming from the roadway.



West Valley City Fire, Police and pubic works, worked to keep the traffic back and alert residents about the potential hazards. These departments worked along side granger hunter water improvement district to get the situation under control. Granger hunter had to shut down pressure stations and locate the appropriate valves to stem the rising waters. Fortunately there were no injuries reported, and no property damages were known of at the time of this article. The attached video was taken well into the incident and the water pressure had been lowered considerably. Thanks so much for those that responded quickly and helped to make sure that damage was kept to a minimum.

Remember,      BeSmart.... Be Safe.... BE READY!
Fire Marshal Bob

ITS WEST FEST EVE!!!!!!!

Hello everyone. I'm so excited! Because its WEST FEST EVE! You know the night before the big three days in june
.
Come join the Fire Department as we celebrate with the City in the annual three day event. This year the fire department will be doing many fun family activities, we'll have safety sheets and books. We will be featuring our "home safe home" program with an activity book for families with over 60 activities to make your home a safer place. There will be photo opportunities, an inflatable house for families to learn about home safety, and our C.E.R.T. team members will be there to help Westfesters get their "Ghoul" on by doing moulage for those that are not faint of heart.

One item we especially want to talk about is the West Valley City Firefighters support of Camp Na Na Mah. This is the University of Utah burn center camp for kids ages 7-12 that have been injured by fire. Camp is held in early August and runs for four days. Each year the firefighters rally together to provide meals, activities, and interaction with the kids. "Its one of the most rewarding things I've done" according to Mary Lindsay Vonk, one of our engineer paramedics.

This year, Battalion Chief Jeff Fox has headed up a special fundraiser for camp nah nah mah. Thanks to the efforts of the West Valley City firefighters, police officers, and community. We have around 30 bikes that we will be selling during westfest. These bikes have been cleaned up and serviced and are very reasonably priced. You can purchase one of these bikes during westfest at the fire department display. The money will be donated to camp nah nah mah to help offset costs for this wonderful program. You of course can make a donation to the camp even if you don't need a bike.


We hope to see you there, and don't forget about the fire works on Saturday June 21 at 10:00


Remember....

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

West Valley City Fire Hosts "Trench Rescue" for Metro Fire Agency

Technical rescue crews from Utah's Metro Fire Agency recently held training at Wst Valley City Fire Departments training center.



This critical training provides crews from around the Salt Lake Valley to work together and build team relationships. the focus of this training was "Trench Rescue". with summer upon us and many construction projects ramping up for the season "We want to make sure that our personnel are ready in the event that one of these sites has a collapse that involves some one being trapped in a life threatening situation..... time is critical in these events.... We don't have the time to invent how to handle the situation, we need to be ready to make a difference at the outset" said one of the instructors.

Remember everyone.

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

          FIRE MARSHAL BOB

West Valley City Fire

"Be quick but never hurry" - John Wooden

In todays fast paced world, everyone seems to be in a big rush or hurry. In the fire service we never want to hurry...... does that surprise you? Let me explain.
The great UCLA Coach John Wooden once said "be quick but never hurry". In that five word sermon he teaches a great principle. When we hurry we often make mistakes, leave out key components, and often cause more damage than we intend. In the fire service we cannot afford to make those types of errors. A mistake or missed step might mean the difference between life and death. A crew responding to an emergency can't hurry while driving a large heavy piece of equipment. We have a responsibility to get our crew there as quickly as possible, and without putting ourselves and the public at great risk. The difference between being quick and hurried is quite a bit.
A good example of this would be a new fire fighter being introduced to our self contained breathing apparatus, or air packs. The first time he or she is told to put the pack on, they are given instructions and goals such as, you will have  a certain amount of time to put the pack on, usually under 45 seconds or so.  As the instructor stands above them with a stop watch the recruits are nervous, sweat beads up on the forehead, their hear rate increases, and adrenaline is released. When the clock starts they hurry to put the pack on. Invariably they go over the time limit, and as the instructor inspects the firefighter with the air pack donned they find many mistakes, faults and safety issues. As the recruit fire fighter progresses they learn the steps, the in and outs, and what seemed to be an impossible request becomes natural. Not because they hurry but because the have learned to be quick. The old adage" practice makes perfect" is true.
Recently the West Valley Fire Department installed monitors at the stations.

These monitors display the dispatch screen from The Valley Emergency Communications Center or VECC. This allows crews to see incoming calls before they are dispatched on the radio. This simple step has allowed our crews to respond "quicker". Many times the the crew is out the door and on they way to a call before  the dispatcher sends it over the radio, allowing us a "quicker" Safer response.





Remember......

Be Smart.... Be Safe.... Be Ready!

Fire Marshal Bob

What does a dentists drill and a CERT drill have in common?

The answer to this question is that there may be a little discomfort, but in the end they both will improve your smile.

West Valley CERT students work a mock accident scene.

West Valley CERT will be conducting a drill this Friday April 11th at 7:00 PM at the Utah cultural celebration center. (3100 south and approximately 1300 west)  This is open to any of our West Valley CERT members.  So come, bring you gear and join in the fun and mayhem. Like I said it will improve your smile.

Thanks. Fire Marshal Bob

Early morning fire 7194 w Schuler ave

West Valley City Firefighters quickly handle a fire that could have spread to adjacent homes. Nice work A shift.

The fire is currently under investigation.

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