The Colestin Rural Fire District - Bulletin Board Home Page

Since the start of FIRE SEASON on July 1st, open burning has been and remains entirely prohibited. This applies to burn barrels, incinerators, slash piles or debris, and controlled burns to eliminate grass for fuelbreaks. Fireworks on forestlands are also prohibited.

THE POSTED FIRE DANGER LEVEL INCREASED TO "HIGH" (YELLOW) ON JULY 15TH. FURTHER PUBLIC ACTIVITY RESTRICTIONS ARE NOW IN EFFECT, including a CURFEW on some regulated activities between the hours of 1:00 PM and 8:00 PM. See FULL DETAILS.

AS OF TODAY, (WEDNESDAY, JULY 28TH), AT 1:00 AM, the Industrial Fire Precaution Level has moved up to LEVEL II (TWO). See FULL DETAILS.

ODF's Southwest Oregon District information on fire danger can also be directly viewed at: http://www.swofire.oregon.gov/. For further ODF Southwest Oregon District fire information, see: http://twitter.com/swofire and http://swofire.blogspot.com/.

Also, please watch for Emergency Vehicles on our roadways. Not only are some people driving too fast, but some people have nearly hit our district vehicles in their haste to get down the road. Not only is this dangerous for all concerned, but it jeopardizes our district's effectiveness in general and in particular, during emergencies, when there is no time to lose. And if you hear or see that we are running on an Emergency code (flashing lights and/or siren), PULL OVER TO THE SIDE AND LET OUR VEHICLES PASS. Thank you for your cooperation on this.

Thank you for participating in fire protection and prevention, and for helping to keep our valley safe.

This year is the centennial anniversary of 1910's Big Burn, the firestorm that burned millions of acres in Oregon, Washington, Idaho and Montana. Also called the Big Blowup of 1910, the firestorm was the result of multiple fires that started in June and merged on August 20th, burning three million acres in just twenty-four hours, and killing 84 people. The U.S. Forest Service is heading centennial commemmorations. You can learn more at: http://www.fs.fed.us/r1/1910-centennial/. The July-Aug. issue of AAA's "Via" magazine (p. 17) also has a short article on this.

Our first firefighter training of the season on April 9th, 2010, was also an awards and appreciation event, most notably honoring Andy Herskind, who has just retired after 15 years of dedicated volunteer service as Assistant Fire Chief in Hilt. Andy's wife, Carole Herskind, was also recognized for her many years of service as a Board member for Hilt, from which she has recently retired.

The appointment of David Lipking as the new Assistant Chief in Hilt was announced, followed by a group recognition of CalFire crew members who have assisted our firefighter and medical trainings and other efforts; individual recognitions of our emergency medical responders who have recently completed that course, receiving either first-time certification or re-certification; and a group recognition of all of our firefighters.

Andy was presented with a plaque commemorating his long years of never-hesitating service, there were refreshments with cake, many photos were taken, and filmmaker (and firefighter) Alex Cox filmed the awards presentations throughout.

Alex has posted an edited four-minute-plus video clip from his footage on YouTube, at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9RUtX6kUIw ("CRFD_01" - alexcoxfilms).

Some of the photos taken by other volunteers are also now available here on our website, on a page with individual photo links.

We have more FUNDRAISING SHIRTS, including more T-shirts in sizes "L" and "XL," available at the Stateline Store in Hilt. These sweatshirts and Tees make great gifts, and support our supplementary budget. See below for further info.

Will you be doing any landscaping on your property? Check out the OSU Extension Service's brochure, "Fire-Resistant Plants for Oregon Home Landscapes," available online, and from Jackson County's OSU partnership office, the Southern Oregon Research & Extension Center (SOREC), at 569 Hanley Road, Central Point OR 97503; Phone: (541) 776-7371 Fax: (541) 773-7373; Office Hours: Monday-Friday 8:00 am - 5:00 pm.

What would you do in a fire emergency? Your local fire district has a plan. Check it out on our Colestin-Hilt Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) page.

"How do I make my home safer from wildfire?"

"What exactly is 'defensible space'?"

For lots of relevant, easy-to-use information,

Check out the Rogue Valley Fire Prevention Cooperative's website at: http://www.rvfpc.com.

In particular, visit the link on Wildfire Preparedness: Intro To Fire Suppression, and from there, the section on Fire Prevention: Homes in the Wildland-Urban Interface [the WUI].

On the Preparing Your Home For Wildfire page, be sure to use the list of Related Links (on the right) to learn more about Defensible Space, Primary and Secondary Fuel Breaks, Home Readiness: Fuel Reduction Around Structures, Fire Safety in the Wildland Urban Interface, Wildland Urban Interface Property Regulations, and much more.

WINTER (YEAR-ROUND) FIRE SAFETY CONSIDERATIONS:

Please remember to CLEAN YOUR STOVE PIPES and/or CHIMNEYS, if you have not already done it. For lots of useful info on stove safety, flue fires, how to prevent flue fires, and how to handle one if it happens, see our Stoves & Flue Fires page.

REPLACE ALL OF YOUR SMOKE DETECTOR BATTERIES. Many home fires are discovered too late, not because there are no smoke detectors, BUT BECAUSE THE BATTERIES HAVE FAILED. The few minutes this takes can significantly enhance your home fire protection.

Based on the types of problems and incidents the District experienced last winter, we sent out a pamphlet brochure last winter to our district members covering many key points of Winter Emergency Preparedness and Home Safety Reminders. For more info and to view or print the brochure, see WINTER EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS PLANNING & SAFETY.

During the winter months, keep DRIVEWAYS AND ACCESS ROADS to your residence as clear as possible. We need to be able to reach you in winter - yet snow loads can cause trees and branches overhanging roads or driveways to break, delaying or preventing us from arriving. Keep your driveway plowed, and trim back or remove tree branches near and over driveways, BEFORE potential fire situations require emergency access.

Caution Reminder: If power drop lines are involved, call us first. Power companies are NOT responsible for these - property owners are - yet drop lines are dangerous and need special handling. We will try to assist you to locate a qualified professional to do it. MORE INFO: The Jan.-Feb. 2008 issue of The Colestin Valley Buzz community newsletter featured an excellent article explaining electrical drop lines and safety issues: Trees and Electrical Lines Don't Mix! (PDF format).

Home Safety Reminders:

Do NOT leave home with the clothes dryer still on. Overheating is an all-too-common problem.

To lessen this fire danger, clean your dryer filters often, and clean the dryer duct at least once a year.

Finally, make sure that all electrical appliances are turned off before you leave your residence for any length of time.

Preparedness and prevention is your best defense. For further information, see our Home and Personal Safety page, or call us at (541) 488-1768.

SPECIAL NOTE: Dead deer have been found in our area, due to a virus disease. If you find one, the OR. Dept. of Fish & Wildlife requests that you report it to Steve Neimela at (541) 826-8774 x239. See our community forum page for details.

On the afternoon of Sunday, September 20th, 2009, we held our Community B-B-Q gathering, celebrating 27 years in service as a Volunteer Fire District here in the valley.

By all accounts, this was a very successful event, well-attended by local residents, as well as by the Hornbrook Cal-Fire crew.

Lots of free food was available, including Sharron Halvorson's wonderful home-made salsa & chips and a vat of fresh local corn-on-the-cob prepared by Jeane Marin.

Board Chair Peggy Moore introduced our Board members and Fire Chief Steve Avgeris to everyone, and Board member Tod Davies gave an informal talk about the District, covering a bit about our history, our current status and abilities, and our goals and plans for the District's future direction. She also explained how the Hilt Volunteer Hose Company (a separate entity) and the CRFD work together, how we receive rental income from other agencies that use our trucks and water tender on fires outside of our district, and what our District's tax base provides and where that money goes, as well as what it does not cover.

Lisa Buttrey presented a Special Award for the most improved property under the ODF-sponsored Fuels Reduction Program (locally coordinated and organized by Lisa); this year's chosen award recipients are Dave and Martha Stan, who were recognized and honored with a plaque (in absentia) for all of their hard work.

Some of our vehicles were also on display, including our water tender, our medical rescue unit, and one of our fire trucks; a few of our crew members later provided equipment demonstrations to some of the more curious younger people.

This event took a lot of preparation and had assistance from many people, both within the Fire District and from local community members at large. The effort was well worth it, however, as it gave us a chance to talk to our constituents about the Fire District, and it gave our community an opportunity to see who we are and what the Fire District offers, ask questions, and give us your input.

The Board and firefighters for Colestin and Hilt thank all of you who attended, assisted, listened to our presentation, and in general, helped to make this event a great success.

And as always, we also thank you for your continued participation in fire prevention and protection, and for your support for YOUR LOCAL VOLUNTEER fire district!

FUNDRAISING T-SHIRTS were also on sale; these are newly ordered shirts for both Colestin and Hilt, available with either the CRFD or Hilt logo in front, with the locally favorite "Firefighting - the hottest job on Earth!" slogans on back. The quality of these shirts is better than ever before - more durable ("they don't stretch out of shape") and the colors, including the images and lettering, don't fade over time as they have in the past.

While we sold quite a few, there are still some left. Right now, they are still available in all sizes but quantities are limited (we can't guarantee availability), so if you want one, get them while you can - and support your local volunteer fire district when you do! The Stateline Store in Hilt has some; if you can't find the one you want there, you can call us at 488-1768 to purchase them directly. For MORE INFO & PICS, see our fundraising page.

QUICK TAKES:

Get the LATEST WEATHER FORECAST for the SOUTHERN OREGON & SISKIYOU MOUNTAINS region using links on our Weather & Fire Weather page. For weather warning updates, check our region on the National Weather Service's website at: http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/mfr/.

The March 5th, 2008, CRFD Fundraiser - BENEFIT FILM SHOWING of "Searchers 2.0," Alex Cox's new film, was a huge success. Read more.
Fire Service Appreciation Day: According to the Nov.-Dec. 2008 issue of The Communique, "The Second Annual Fire Service Appreciation Day [was held] on January 27th, 2009. In keeping with passage of HJR 25, events [were] held across the state to recognize and honor the fire service. HJR 25 'encourages all citizens of Oregon to recognize and honor our fire service members for their efforts to keep our citizens safe from the ravages of fire.' Communities across the state [had] an opportunity to host a variety of events recognizing members of their local fire departments and districts for their dedication, commitment and sacrifice."

Colestin's name (finally spelled correctly!) makes the news: See The Mail Tribune on Sunday, November 16th, 2008, for reporter Paul Fattig's article entitled

"Drop the 'e' and keep your hands up where we can see them: It's Colestin, not Colestine; got it?"

or use the following link:
http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20081116/NEWS/811160311

Also In This Bulletin:

Upcoming Board Meetings

Jackson County Integrated Fire Plan - Upcoming Community Meetings

UPDATE on the West-Wide Energy Corridor DPEIS & background

Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) News

CWPP Phone Tree and Road Signage Projects

Our FEMA structure fire engine is here

Hilt VFD's new Fire and Rescue Rig

Cougar Alert Update

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Upcoming Board Meetings:

Next Board Meeting Date

Next Board Meeting:

Friday, August 13th, 2010, at 6:00 PM (regular time)

at the Hilt Community Church.

The AGENDA for the meeting will be posted here beforehand.

The Agenda for each meeting is posted on our Board Minutes page prior to the meeting date.

Want to know what's happening? Read the Board Minutes! Limited archives also available.

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Jackson County Integrated Fire Plan

Planned Community Wildfire Meetings are part of countywide wildfire protection. Discussion topics include information you need to live safely in wildfire country, the fire planning process, how your neighborhood can be more wildfire safe, and meeting your local fire service providers. Representatives from local Jackson County Fire Districts, Oregon Department of Forestry, Rogue River/Siskiyou National Forest, and Medford BLM attend these meetings.

For information about any currently planned community meetings, contact:

Randy Iverson, Fire Chief Jackson County Fire District #3 (541) 826-7100
Brian Ballou, Fire Prevention Specialist, Oregon Dept. of Forestry (541) 664-3328
Neil Benson, Jackson County Integrated Fire Plan (541) 482-4682
Chris Chambers, Wildfire Fuels Reduction Coordinator, Ashland Fire & Rescue (541) 552-206

View ODF's September, 2005, News bulletin as a pdf file.
(This requires Adobe Acrobat Reader 5.0 or higher, FREE if you need to download it.)

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UPDATE on the West-Wide Energy Corridor DPEIS - the Decision & background

The WEST WIDE ENERGY CORRIDOR DPEIS [Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement]:

UPDATE: In August, 2008, the BLM's Medford district office published a "Record of Decision and Resource Management Plan" for the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument which includes information indicating that the energy corridor under discussion has been sited near the Klamath area and to the east of Ashland instead of running through our valley. Copies of this document are available from the BLM at its Medford District Office, 3040 Biddle Rd., Medford, OR., 97504.

The following concerns CRFD's position on the federal West-wide Energy Corridor DPEIS (Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement), concerning the 3,500-foot wide power corridor that could have run directly through our district. The public comment period on the draft plans ended on February 14th, 2008.

At the January, 2008, Board meeting, Lisa [Buttrey] provided the Board with background information and maps, pointed out issues of concern, and suggested talking points about this project.

The law allowing for the creation of this project was passed in 2005; the plan itself was released in mid-November of 2007. The plan is to have a 2/3rds-mile-wide pipeline/power-line corridor in the Valley. A number of these corridors are proposed throughout the west to handle the power sources (propane, gas, etc.) that is needed to keep up with increasing fuel needs in the country.

After discussion at the January meeting, the Board took the position that this area is not the best to locate this project. Not only are there environmental and geological concerns, but also the financial costs of going through the Siskiyou Mountains would be astronomical. Areas of eastern Oregon, which are flat and uninhabited, would be a far better place to locate the project.

The Board passed a motion directing the fire district, as the local agency, to send a letter outlining these concerns, as the project is currently proposed. Peggy Moore, as the Board Chair, was appointed to write the letter on behalf of the District.

The CRFD's letter in response to the West Wide Energy Corridor DPEIS follows:

January 20, 2008

West-wide Energy Corridor D[P]EIS
9700 S Cass Avenue – Bldg 900, Mail Stop 4
Argonne, IL 60439

Ladies and Gentlemen,

At our January 18th Board of Directors meeting, we passed a unanimous motion to provide written comments on the proposed Corridor (#4-247) through the Siskiyou Crest from Oregon into California. As the fire protection agency that is responsible for this area (for both fire and emergency medical) we STRONGLY oppose locating the corridor in this area.

There are a variety of reasons for our concerns but we believe the environmental, geological and financial arguments are the most salient and deserve your focused attention.

. The Colestin Valley and Siskiyou Pass area are well known as unstable in terms of their geology. Siskiyou literally means “moving mountain”. Slumps, shifts and collapses are fairly frequent in the area. As a result of one of these natural occurrences the Colestin Valley must now employ a receiver to rebroadcast telephone signals because the cable was rendered unusable by earth movement along its route.

. Interstate 5 is a vital transportation highway from Mexico to Alaska. Many of the trucks using this route on a daily basis carry toxic wastes, including nuclear waste. In addition, essential supplies of all kinds are hauled on this route day and night. Accidents happen frequently, sometimes closing the highway or rending one lane or another impassable.

. This particular stretch along Interste 5 (proposed corridor #4-247) is the longest stretch of 6% grade on the interstate system. Along with instability and bottleneck problems, the expense of putting lines across the Siskiyou Pass would be enormous. There are certainly locations in the state of Oregon that are flat, have far less interstate traffic and reside in more geologically stable environments. Areas in sparsely populated Eastern Oregon might be a consideration.

. The proposal, as we understand it, will make the Klamath River dam substation a destination for the proposed energy corridor. In doing so, you are targeting a substation connected to a dam that may soon be dismantled when court-ordered priority concerns for Klamath River salmon prevent re-licensing of Klamath River dams.

. The energy corridor segment, which is proposed for California’s Jenny Creek Falls, is a Redding BLM area of critical environmental concern.

We appreciate that when notified by many concerned citizens you moved the original 3,500 foot energy corridor out of the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, but we still believe that for the reasons stated above, putting it in this region at all is a serious mistake.

We are a small, entirely volunteer fire district that, for 25 years, has provided needed fire and emergency medical services to the residents of our community. We simply do not have the resources, nor are more likely to appear, to support a crisis occasioned by a “mega” corridor .The location of our area makes it difficult (and at times impossible) for outside agencies to respond in a timely fashion.

We believe, once these facts are reviewed and the costs of locating the corridor in this area thoroughly researched that [the desirability of] finding a more geologically friendly, more cost effective and less populated traffic area will become clear.

We would be happy to provide further information to you on this matter. Thank you for your attention to our concerns and we hope that you will find a more hospitable location for this project.

Sincerely yours,

Peggy A. Moore
Chairperson
Colestin Rural Fire District
Board of Directors

c. Chief Avgeris
Board

The comment period ended February 14th, 2008. Thank you to all those of you who submitted your comments to the West-wide Energy Corridor D[P]EIS planners.

For further information, see the West Side Energy Corridor website:

http://corridoreis.anl.gov

For a more complete, easy-to-understand summary of the plan as it may affect us locally, together with issues to consider, maps, and further information, see the (PDF-format) article "West-wide Energy Corridors Routes Planned," published in the Jan.-Feb. 2008 issue of The Colestin Valley Buzz, and re-published here with publisher Lisa Buttrey's permission.

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Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) News:

In June, 2005, the Fire Plan Committee (John Ames, Elaine Shanafelt, and Lisa Buttrey) completed and released the Colestin-Hilt Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) that was in the works for over a year. In addition to a public presentation of the main points of the plan by Committee Chair and Coordinator Lisa Buttrey at the community barbeque on Saturday, June 18th, the plan is now available in detail here on our site, through our Colestin-Hilt Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) page.

"The completed plan," according to Lisa Buttrey, "has an Intro section, a Description section, a brief 'Risks' section, and finally the meat of the document in the last section, 'The Action Plan,' followed by the 'Appendices.' "The Action Plan gives detailed ideas for things to do and calls for volunteers to do them. [We] hope to get a few 'Action' items assigned to willing takers (from outside the fire department proper!)."

The Plan has an enormous wealth of information in it, and reflects a tremendous amount of time, extensive research, many meetings with other fire agency and county officials, and hard work. The result is a document that provides a working plan of action for our community to pro-actively achieve a much better level of fire prevention and protection and disaster preparedness than we have ever known. We are also now in compliance, ahead of schedule, and coordinated with the County's new regional fire plan. Check out the Plan on our CWPP page.

Also of interest are some very interesting articles that were edited out of the final CWPP: "Geology of the Districts," a summary by local resident Russell Juncal, and according to Lisa, "very readable for all residents." The second is "Fire Regimes, Fire History and Forest Conditions in the Klamath-Siskiyou Region: An Overview and Synthesis of Knowledge, by Evan J. Frost and Rob Sweeney. Lisa states that this is "a scientific paper, quite lengthy at 59 pages, but full of info about fire history, fire regimes, suppression history, logging impact on fire, etc." A third article that was not considered part of the official plan but that is also relevant is a Homeowner's Safety Checklist from the Fire Safe Council. All of these articles are now available through our CWPP page as well.

Josephine County's Plan, by comparison: On January 18, 2006, the Oregon Dept. of Forestry announced in a press release that Josephine County's Integrated Fire Plan has been awarded statewide recognition: "Josephine County was recently chosen to receive the 2005 Partners for Disaster Resistance and Resilience Outstanding Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan. Josephine County was recognized for the collaborative planning effort that resulted in the Josephine County Integrated Fire Plan..." To learn more about how our neighboring county has prepared a fire plan that has now been recognized throughout the state of Oregon, read the full text of ODF's Josephine County Integrated Fire Plan press release (Jan. 18, 2006).

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CWPP Phone Tree and Road Signage Projects

The "New & Improved Emergency Phone Tree" and Road Signage are two other developments related to our Community Wildfire Protection Plan. Read more.

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OUR FEMA STRUCTURE-FIRE ENGINE

After nearly a two-year wait while CDF built the engine for us, and after outfitting it with parts, our long-awaited FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency)-financed structure fire engine, Engine No. 44-13,was finished and put into full-time service in the fall of 2004. It is housed at Station No. 1 at Colestin, in the center of the district. Photos and more info.

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HILT VOLUNTEER HOSE COMPANY'S FIRE & RESCUE RIG

During part of the 2004 fire season, Colestin and Hilt volunteers helped staff the Hornbrook CDF Station. The proceeds from that effort enabled the Hilt Department to procure a new rescue rig (Hilt Rescue Vehicle 44-41). Photo on Vehicles page.

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COMMUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT: COUGAR ALERT

We need to continue to be aware of cougars near our homes. For updated details on local cougar attacks, information on cougar behavior, and safety tips for cougar encounters, see our community page.

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Check out the Rogue Valley Fire Prevention Cooperative's website at: http://www.rvfpc.com.