NEWS
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, August 28, 2019
A9
The Eagle/Richard Hanners
Ten volunteer members of the Prairie City Fire Department gathered at the fire hall Aug. 8 for their weekly meeting. From left are Chris Camarena Sr., Randy Hennen, Devin Packard, Carlos
Bortell, Jonathan Lawrence, Chris Camarena Jr., Brandon Gillihan, Kirk Stebbens and Andy Hutzell. Kneeling in front is Chief Marvin Rynearson.
Prairie City firefighters protect wide territory
By Richard Hanners
Blue Mountain Eagle
Marvin Rynearson started
hanging out with the Prairie City
Fire Department in 1968 when he
was just 15 years old. He officially
joined when he turned 16. Now
the chief, he’ll mark his 51st year
with the department in December.
“We’ve always maintained
a mentoring group,” he told the
Eagle, noting that even now a few
high school-aged kids are on the
roster.
The rural area protected by the
department is wide ranging, cov-
ering about 131 acres across the
valley, extending from just past
timberline at the north to just past
timberline at the south.
West to east, the rural protec-
tion area runs from Pine Creek
east to about 1 mile past the
Conestoga wagon on Highway
26. The department is unique in
the state for providing both wild-
land and structure protection in its
service area.
All the firefighting equipment
belongs to the rural side of the
department — with the exception
of the 1928 Model A Ford that
runs down Front Street during
each Fourth of July parade. The
antique fire engine belongs to the
city, Rynearson said.
“We used it during a downtown
fire about 30 years ago,” he said.
The department has two Type 1
structure engines built in 1995 and
two wildland engines — a Type 6
on loan from the federal govern-
ment and a Type 4 6-by-6 mili-
tary-style engine. It also has two
tenders and a vehicle for the chief.
Extrication equipment is kept in
one of the Type 1 engines, he said.
An
all-volunteer
depart-
ment with about 20 on the roster,
Rynearson said response varies
depending on the season. Many
of the local firefighters work on
wildland crews in the summer.
“That’s just the way it is,” he
said.
Rynearson said he could use
about 10-15 more volunteers.
Only 10 of the current roster are
active, showing up at meetings
and not just the big fires, and he’d
prefer to see 20 active volunteers.
The number of active volunteers
REPORTER
The Blue Mountain Eagle, a family-owned weekly newspaper in a stunningly
beautiful Oregon community, seeks an energetic, dedicated reporter.
The Eagle is located in John Day, where seeing deer in front yards is normal
and traffic is unheard of, just three hours from Bend and Pendleton.
Surrounded by scenic forests and dissected by mountain streams, the
location offers year-round recreational opportunities, including fishing,
hunting, backpacking, camping, snowmobiling and horseback riding.
Despite the picturesque environment, the community is at the center of an
evolving natural resource restoration economy, which gains statewide and
even national attention.
has declined some since the 1970s
and 1980s.
He recalled two fires that were
downtown and difficult. A fire that
destroyed a movie theater dating
back to the silent era left a vacant
lot on the south side of Front
Street.
“We did a good job of prevent-
ing damage to the adjacent build-
ings on that one,” he recalled.
Another fire burned down the
Jackson Apartments building
where the post office stands now.
“Those were trying fires,” he
recalled.
The November 2017 fire at the
Strawberry Village Apartment
complex tragically took the lives
of two young children who were
trapped upstairs.
“We responded in seven min-
utes at 3 a.m. in the morning,”
Rynearson said. “You can’t beat
that.”
When the firefighters arrived,
however, the staircase was gone
and they had to find another
access route. By then, it was too
late, he said.
Being a volunteer firefighter is
rewarding if sometimes difficult
or tragic. It provides a pathway to
a career in firefighting with much
of the same certification available
from expensive schools.
Anyone 18 or older who wants
to learn more should come to one
of their meetings in the fire hall
at 142 S. Kilbourne St. every
Thursday at 6 p.m., Rynearson
said.
COMING SOON
IN YOUR BLUE
MOUNTAIN EAGLE!
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Despite the small-town charm, the residents are engaged and politically
active in local and national debates, and hard-hitting stories are never hard to
find. Ongoing topics include state and federal policies, forest health, logging,
public lands grazing, water supply, wildlife habitat improvements and wildfire
resilience, in addition to coverage of small-town life and local government.
The position offers a wealth of breaking news and enterprise opportunities.
Serving the community for more than 150 years, the Eagle is the oldest
weekly newspaper in Oregon and is part of EO Media Group, an award-
winning and innovative news organization with an active family of owners.
This position offers excellent advancement opportunities in a company that
prefers to hire from within. EO Media Group owns 14 newspapers and
journals that provide accurate, fair and timely reporting about the people and
issues impacting the communities we serve in the Pacific Northwest,
reflecting the responsibility and spirit of a free press.
We seek a journalist who is passionate about local news and excited about
the opportunity to publish in print, online and through social media.
Candidates must be able to develop story ideas, take photographs, develop
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offering insurances, a 401(k)/401(k) Roth retirement plan and paid time off
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or by email to hr@eomediagroup.com.
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195 N. Canyon Blvd.
John Day, Oregon
135210