Welcome to Spokane County Fire District 8
Spokane County Fire District 8 provides a full range of services that include fire suppression, emergency medical services, fire prevention, education and investigation, and associated support and maintenance services to our 22,397 citizens in a 110 square mile area in south Spokane County.
SCFD8 members responded to 3,614 calls for service in 2020 from the District's four fire stations located in the Moran, Valleyford, Ponderosa, and Saltese areas. Each station is staffed twenty-four hours a day with a combination of career, part-time, volunteer and resident volunteer personnel.
Spokane County Fire District 8 operates under the State of Washington laws and codes governing fire departments by direction of a three-person Board of Fire Commissioners: Andy Rorie; Lee Boling, and Greg Hesse.
RECRUITMENT POSTING
Spokane County Fire Protection District No 8 is currently recruiting candidates to fill three (3) immediate openings: Career Firefighter/EMT-B candidates, up to two (2) openings; and, Career Firefighter/Paramedic candidates, up to two (2) openings.
The estimated start date for these positions is August 2, 2021. To review minimum qualifications, salary and benefit information, and the application and hiring process see Career Firefighter/EMT & Career Firefighter/Paramedic Recruitment flyer.
All Spokane County Fire Protection District No 8 Firefighter/EMT and Firefighter/Paramedic applicants must register through Public Safety Testing.
Spokane County Fire Protection District No 8
Passes Fire Levy Lid Lift Resolution
The Board of Fire Commissioners for Spokane County Fire Protection District No.8 voted unanimously to place a multi-year Fire Levy lid lift on the August Primary Election ballot. If approved by voters, a “lid lift” allows the fire district to restore the levy rate for emergency services to $1.50 per $1000 of assessed valuation for collection in 2022 and allows for the five succeeding years to authorize one percent or the percentage allowed by the consumer price index increase reported each June, whichever is greater.
The Fire Levy lid lift is necessary for Spokane County Fire District 8 to continue essential levels of service. Funding from the lid lift would be used to maintain daily operations and improve emergency service levels, improve firefighter training, and repair equipment and apparatus and well as replace aging structural and wildland fire trucks and required firefighter safety equipment. These items also are necessary to maintain the community’s insurance rating, which affects the premiums paid by home and business owners.
RCW 84.55 limits the District to a 1% revenue increase per year. Due to the 1% limit, most taxpayers are paying less to the fire levy each year as property values increase. The amount collected by the District is not keeping up with the cost of inflation.
If approved by voters, the lid lift would restore the Fire Levy to $1.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value. The proposal would be on the August 3rd Primary Election ballot and cost approximately 36 cents per $1,000 (or approximately $9.00 per month for the owner of a $300,000 home).
The levy rate has fallen to $1.14/$1,000 in 2021. Spokane County Fire District 8 is primarily funded through fire levy taxes. Each year the fire district is limited to roughly the same amount of revenue due to the limitations of RCW 84.55.
Temporary Burn Restrictions in Parts of Eastern Washington
Restrictions are prompted by uptick in wildfires caused by escaped debris burns amid warming temperatures and increased fire danger
The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR), in cooperation with partner agencies, is implementing the following burn restrictions on DNR-protected lands in eastern Washington. Most of these fires have been caused by people conducting debris burns and failing to completely extinguish their piles or not monitoring them appropriately with a water source available and ready to douse flames that grow large or escape the burn area.
Effective Friday, April 16, 2021
- Rule burning (small debris disposal fires) is not allowed in the following Fire Danger Rating Areas:
- Foothills
- Upper Basin in Spokane, portions of Lincoln County north of Hwy. 2.
Warming temperatures have dried grasses, and grassy areas are now experiencing numerous wildfires started by outdoor debris burns. In the Northeast region, 100 wildfires have been started in 2021, including 46 since April 1. Of those 100 wildfires, 62 have been caused by people burning debris outdoors and failing to completely extinguish them. These escaped burns have burned over 217 acres this year.
This is expected to be temporary until “green up” begins, which should start after spring rains allow new grasses to grow.
The best way to be certain a burn pile fully extinguished is to dig into the ash and feel the area with the back of your hand to make sure there is no heat left. It is common for rain to create a cap over the ash, with heat remaining inside. Winds can weaken the cap and allow the pile to reignite. Campfires should be doused with water and stirred until all coals are completely extinguished and is cool to the touch.
Burning with a DNR permit and campfires are still allowed. A misdemeanor citation will be issued for people who do not follow the rules and conditions of their burn permits. If proven negligent, the offender will be billed for the fire suppression costs.
DNR Fire Danger Rating System
The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has implemented a new fire danger rating system in Washington State. Instead of basing a fire danger rating by county, a Fire Danger Rating Area (FDRA) is based on geographic areas that share similar fuels, climate, and topography, in addition to administrative boundaries.
When you phone DNR's burn hotline ( 1-800-323-BURN) to find out about burn restrictions in your area, you will be asked to enter the first four letters of your county (SPOK), you will then be directed to choose your FDRA. Most of Spokane County Fire District 8 falls within the Foothills RFDA. You can find your specific FDRA by using DNR's Fire Danger and Outdoor Burning risk map https://fortress.wa.gov/dnr/protection/firedanger/.
