Small fire departments have limited resources, but many of them in Snohomish County are sending what little they have — brush trucks, other apparatus and personnel -- to the fires in Eastern Washington.
Sultan’s Chief Merlin Halvorson only has six full-time firefighters, but he sent two to Spokane County.
“We never have the personnel to spare but we chose to spare them this year because they need the help,” Halvorson explained.
But what if he needs the help back home?
“So long as we don’t have a large-scale event, we’ll be fine,” Halvorson said.
With high temperatures and dry conditions, a large-scale event is not out of the question. Halvorson is leading a monthly meeting of Snohomish County fire chiefs, and Wednesday’s topic is centered on sending resources east.
“There are pieces of equipment that have been sent to Eastern Washington,” explained Ron Simmons, Snohomish County District 4 fire chief. But those pieces are not from Simmons’ district; Simmons says he really needs to keep the people he has left.
“Because of the way we train our people, I have lost almost 20 of my part-time staff to other departments,” Simmons said, where they have full-time positions available.