vernonia rural fire protection district
september21
2017
15
Vernonia Rural Fire Protection District
Your Address Signs
For those of you who live with-
in VRFPD’s district, please make sure
that your address signs that are placed
out in front of your homes are facing
towards Vernonia. First responders
need to be able to see those addresses
as they are driving down the road. It
is not helpful to have the address sign
facing perpendicular to the roadway,
because first responders will have to
slow significantly while checking for
your address.
Please keep grass, trees, and
shrubs cleared away from the signs
so that they can be easily seen. In ad-
dition, please keep trees and shrubs
cleared on both sides of your driveway,
no matter how long your driveway is.
The ambulance and fire trucks need to
be able to pull up your driveway with-
out incurring damage to the rigs from
brush along the sides or low overhang-
ing limbs. Remember that especially in
the winter time, low hanging limbs will
be even closer to the ground if they are
burdened with snow.
Thank you in advance for your
continued cooperation and understand-
ing.
What is The Emergency Conflagration Act?
The Office of State Fire Marshal
assists and supports the Oregon fire
service during major emergency
operations through the Conflagration
Act (ORS 476.510). The Conflagration
Act was developed in 1940 as a civil
defense measure and can be invoked
only by the governor. The act allows
the State Fire Marshal to mobilize
firefighters and equipment from around
the state. The Conflagration Act is only
used for fires that involve or threaten life
and structures.
When there is a wildland fire,
the Oregon Department of Forestry,
along with local fire departments in the
immediate area, respond to fight the
wildland fire.
The State is divided into Fire
Defense Districts. The Local Chief
of that Fire Defense District works
with Deputy State Fire Marshal and
Fire Defense Board Chief to request
assistance from the State Fire Marshal.
At that point, the State Fire Marshal
requests that the Governor implements
the Conflagration Act, which enables the
Office of State Fire Marshal to request
equipment and firefighters from around
the State of Oregon.
The Oregon Office of State Fire
Marshal’s three Incident Management
Teams (IMTs) provide comprehensive
incident command to manage ongoing
emergency operations. IMTs provide
incident management expertise in
logistics, finance, planning, public
information, operations, safety, and
community issues.
The teams respond with resourc-
es mobilized by the Governor for a con-
flagration or other emergency that has
overwhelmed the control and resources
of local emergency responders (ORS
476.510). IMTs enhance effective co-
ordination among responding agencies
during fires, floods, earthquakes, struc-
tural collapse, tsunamis, the spilling of
hazardous materials, and other natural or
human-caused incidents.
The IMT will develop a plan
of action to aggressively and safely
mitigate the incident to which it has
been assigned, either through Unified
Command or a single incident command
structure.
Resources assigned to the
incident will operate with the guidance
of an Incident Action Plan (IAP) within
an organized chain of command and
formal safety plan. The IAP will address
the objectives, strategies, and tactics as
dictated by the risks and opportunities
associated with the incident.
The IMT intends to commit
resources to the incident only after re-
sources have been briefed on the devel-
oping strategy and tactics, resource-spe-
cific objectives, weather, fuel types, and
safety considerations. Within the second
operational period, the IMT intends to
develop a formal IAP for delivery via an
Operational Period Briefing. The IMT
expects that all personnel shall receive
a briefing by their immediate supervi-
sor prior to being deployed within the
hazard area. This briefing shall detail re-
source assignments, assigned objectives,
chain of command, and safety consider-
ations.
The IMT may place firefighters
at a greater level of risk to save lives,
save property, or reduce environmental
impact. The IMT will not place fire-
fighters at risk if the incident does not
have implications related to life safety,
protection of property, or environmental
impacts.
To meet the IMT intentions, a
formal series of planning meetings and
briefings will occur. The IMT expects
all members critical to the development
of the IAP to promptly attend those
meetings to provide mission critical
information.
From 1996 to 2016, there have
been 70 Conflagrations in the State of
Oregon.
Short Summary:
• Conflagrations declared: 70
• Most in one year: 11 in 2002
Calls responded to August 1-31
Fire
Emergency Medical Service
Hazardous Condition
Service Call
Good Intent
Severe Weather & Natural Disaster
Special Incident
No Emergency Found
False Alarm
Total
1
39
4
3
10
0
0
0
0
57
• Most in one week: 5 in 1996 and 5
in 2002
• Most in one day: 3 in 1996
One example, from 2015, would
be the “Grizzly Bear Complex” fire.
• Conflagration date: 8/20/2015
• Communities threatened: Flora
(Wallowa County)
• Umatilla National Forest at WA
border
• Structures threatened: (405)
residences and (98) other structures
• Structures saved: (400) residences
and (78) other structures
• Structures lost: (25)
• OSFM-mobilized Task Forces:
Marion, Yamhill, Clatsop, Columbia,
and Union County
• Conflagration mobilization cost:
$736,540.44
• FMAG reimbursement: pending
• Cause: Lighting
You’ll notice that in the Grizzly
Bear Complex fire example, the Oregon
State Fire Marshal (OSFM) mobilized
a Task Force that was made up from
fire departments in Marion, Yamhill,
Clatsop, Columbia, and Union Counties.
Each department bringing the equipment
(fire truck) and personnel to staff the
equipment.
Currently there is a Conflagra-
tion fighting the Eagle Creek and Indian
Creek fires. VRFPD (Vernonia Rural
Fire Protection District) sent one fire-
fighter and a Tender along with another
firefighter from Washington County to
help fight these fires.
All of the fire departments that
join the Conflagration are reimbursed for
all of the expenses that are incurred. The
fire departments that send equipment
and personnel must have Workman’s
Comp Insurance on all of the personnel
involved.
You can go to http://
w w w. o r e g o n . g o v / o s p / S F M / d o c s /
ConflagrationHistory.pdf to view each
of the 70 Conflagrations since 1996 in
the State of Oregon.
Information for this article was obtained
from: http://www.oregon.gov/osp/SFM/
pages/eru_imteams.aspx
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