All of us are aware of the increase in frequency of tragic events which cause numerous casualties and overwhelm emergency responders.  The Spokane Valley Fire Department must prepare to respond to incidents we hope we never see. As a result, SVFD has re-examined their response plans and conducted a series of exercises to address such an event.  Additionally, a new process for triaging patients has been adapted by SVFD and this is being integrated in the exercise.  

During the last two weeks of May, the Fire Safety House will make its rounds to 14 of the 28 grade schools. The program is for 3^rd grade students and teaches the children about home fire safety and how to safely exit a home when the smoke detector is sounding.

Please be aware when landscaping your yard that a 3 foot clear space must be maintained around the circumference of all fire hydrants. This is to include but is not limited to fences, posts, vehicles, trash, and growth.

Spokane Valley Firefighters responded to a report of a residential home on fire at 11:30 a.m. Thursday, May 2, 2013. The call came in from Lifeline stating they could hear someone yelling “get the fire department.”

May 5–11, 2013 is Arson Awareness Week and this year’s theme is “Reducing Residential Arson.” Between 2008-2010, an estimated 16,800 intentionally set fires in residential buildings occurred annually in the United States. These fires resulted in an estimated 280 deaths, 775 injuries and $593 million in property loss each year.

On April 30, 2013, the Spokane Valley Fire Department’s Technical Rescue Team conducted a trench rescue drill at Vera Water and Power’s pole yard on Evergreen Road.  This is a biannual drill the entire team participates in with the goal of learning the most current skills and techniques to rescue someone that has been trapped in a trench by collapsing soil.

SPOKANE, WA: The Spokane Department of Emergency Management in Partnership with local law enforcement encourages the public to join our See It, Say It Campaign and report suspicious activity.

The Department recently conducted an additional three days of High Performance CPR training involving our frontline employees with the goal of increasing the percentage of time that compressions are being performed on a cardiac arrest patient, as well as decreasing the time it takes to deliver a counter shock to the heart.

Burning residential yard & garden debris is not allowed in most areas of Spokane County. Spokane Clean Air's Board of Directors determined in 2008 that administering a program for this type of debris burning is not in-line with the Agency's clean air mission. Instead, promoting alternatives to burning this type of debris, such as backyard composting, chipping, mulching, and even hauling is much better for ensuring cleaner air in our neighborhoods and communities.