Fire departments comply with mandate

Matt Baide | Oct 14, 20210

The Oct. 18 deadline for Gov. Jay Inslee’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate is fast approaching, but Central Mason Fire and EMS and the North Mason Regional Fire Authority are prepared.

CMFEMS Chief Mike Patti said that no one is planning on leaving and the department is in full compliance with the mandate. He reported the fire district has had no occupational related exposures to COVID in the last 20 months, attributing the PPE the team has and sanitizing equipment after each use.

NMRFA Chief Beau Bakken said the department is 98% vaccinated with two people granted religious exemptions and accommodations being made, including wearing an N-95 mask while on the premises, testing is mandatory before every shift and they notify management immediately and do not come in if they experience symptoms.

Bakken added there are two individuals who have been sent letters asking for their vaccine cards to confirm their status but have yet to provide verification.

As it relates to fire season, Patti said the fire season went well in Mason County.

“We had our fair share of brush fires in the district and in the county,” Patti said. “We sent out resources outside of the county into eastern Washington and sent some resources into Oregon quite often this last summer to help out our partners down south. Overall, I think we escaped pretty easily; it could have been a lot worse for us.”

Bakken echoed Patti’s assessment, saying the season was much better than expected.

“What happened here in Mason County was actually a small couple of fires but it was significantly better than what we had anticipated and had experienced in previous years,” Bakken said. “We were just having a conversation with the department of natural resources just yesterday on that. (We were) sitting there going we had really geared up for what was potentially going to be a really tough fire season and really, in Mason County, nothing materialized, or very little materialized.”

Patti said he felt that the burn bans were helpful this summer with the drier conditions and he’s looking at having the burn bans start earlier next year if the weather conditions are similar to this year.

“I personally think having the fireworks ban that happened in the county was probably a good thing for us,” Patti said. “As far as us going out and enforcing the burn ban, what we did was when we went out and got the burn complaints, we went out and investigated them and if we found that the people who were having fires, if the fires were not threatening in anyway, we just basically made sure there was no threats and basically went on their way.”

Bakken said people should expect burn restrictions coming and going throughout the summertime in future years. He said it’s up to the county commissioners about whether to implement a fireworks restriction.

“What we’ve seen and what the fire chiefs association has endorsed is the ban of fireworks,” Bakken said. “You’ve seen that in neighboring jurisdictions and counties and cities to the north and south of us have enacted that. This year, we enacted what was an emergency provision and the emergency provision was really that hot temperature spell that we experienced for about a week and a half … We think it would be prudent to limiting the window when fireworks can be shot off to just a couple of hours on the fourth of July.”

CMFEMS has had 164 burn complaints so far in 2021, which is higher than 122 burn complaints from 2020 and 123 burn complaints in 2019.

NMRFA said they received 17 wildland fires, which are half an acre or less in size. They have responded to 26 building fires, six of which were fully engulfed. The fire authority responded to a total of 2,228 calls so far in 2021.

There are some new things happening at CMFEMS and NMRFA. NMRFA will be moving into a new 21,000 square foot fire station next year, with the anticipated move-in in February, which will be the home for the NMRFA for the next 50 years, according to Bakken. They also have a new fire truck that they will be putting into service soon.

CMFEMS purchased four brand new fire engines in 2020 and are in the process of putting them into service. Patti said the engines are in Allyn, Lake Limerick, Spencer Lake and downtown Shelton. Dedication ceremonies will be conducted soon.

Even though the peak fire season is over, it’s a different kind of fire season in the fall and winter months: chimney fire season.

“A lot of times we’ll see combustible things stored near heating units,” Patti said. “Kids throw out their blankets and get pushed up near heaters, so we always ask people to look around their heating devices and make sure there’s no combustibles around their heating devices, making sure their chimneys are swept and cleaned out and ready for the heating season.”

Patti thanked the citizens for their patience going through the uncharted territory of the pandemic.

Bakken also reminded people about being prepared for weather conditions that come with fall and winter from storms, wind and potential flooding.

“We really ask that people switch that conversion of ‘Hey, am I prepared? Am I ready to go if the power goes out? A lot of times, it catches us off guard as we more into November and all the sudden, the stores are swamped and packed with people trying to get goods and services,” Bakken said. “We’re asking for folks to be prepared for the two or three days that we’re out of power and getting ready for the storm event.”