The year 2007 was an exciting year for the Penn Valley Fire Protection District (PVFPD). We responded to 1,100 emergency incidents, which represents an increase of 5.9% from 2006. Of the 1,100 emergency incidents 77 involved fires and 746 were medical emergencies. The remaining incidents involved hazardous materials, public assist and service calls.

The fire season was a busy one with numerous major vegetation fires in the State of California. There were several significant fires in western Nevada County including our Penn Valley area. Fortunately we did not suffer the large property losses other areas experienced.

A catastrophic fire in the wildland/urban interface remains the most serious threat to our area. Fuels (vegetation) management and treatment is the most effective tool to reduce the threat.

Many of our residents are taking an active role in making sure they have a “defensible space”, giving firefighters an opportunity to save their home in the case of an approaching vegetation fire. Unfortunately, we also see residents not taking a proactive approach to fuel reduction who seem to be hoping they do not experience the devastation that a fire will cause.

We ask our residents to take advantage of the resources available to assist you in making your home fire safe. The Fire Safe Council of Nevada County is an excellent source of information and assistance. You are encouraged to visit their web site (www.firesafecouncilnevco.com) to learn more.

PVFPD is the only fire agency in western Nevada County that, in addition to providing fire suppression and prevention activities, provides advanced life support (paramedics) and an ambulance service. The feedback we receive from our citizens is that this service is important and vital to them. We know that lives are saved by having this service provided locally. However, providing paramedics and the ambulance services stretches our limited resources.

Our personnel are dedicated and talented, and are the District’s most valuable asset. We continue to experience difficulty in recruiting and retaining qualified people. In order to provide the paramedic ambulance service in addition to the fire services, we require a majority of our staff to be cross trained as firefighters and paramedics. However, we are unable to offer wages and benefits comparable to other fire agencies in the immediate area. The result is that fewer applicants apply for positions and some existing personnel are considering employment opportunities elsewhere to better provide for their families.

Our equipment and apparatus are also a concern. Our goal is to replace the front line fire engines after 20 years of use and the front line medic units after 10 years. Currently we are not able to fund this program and rely 100% on donations from the Fire District Auxiliary for our replacement program. The Auxiliary does a fantastic job and the District appreciates their giving of their time and talents, but the donation we receive funds less that 50% of the need.

In April of 2007, at the District request, an impartial Citizen’s Review Committee audited the department from a fiscal and operational perspective. Members of the committee were retired from private businesses where they served in human resources, accounting, risk analysis, auditing, budgeting and other areas of management amassing well over 100 years of hands on experience. After several months of interviewing District staff and several past employees, reviewing documents including budgets and financial reports, and analyzing the information, the committee presented their findings and made nine recommendations. The full report is available at the District administrative office.

The two critical areas identified in the report are:

1. First is finding adequate funding to recruit good employees and retain the talented and dedicated employees we have. We need to be competitive in the area of wages and benefits with fire agencies in our area to insure experienced employees are not forced to make the difficult decision to leave Penn Valley Fire District.

2. The second significant issue facing the District is to obtain a secure funding tool so our equipment and apparatus can be replaced when necessary.

The District’s Board of Directors is exploring ways to meet the challenges. We will need your input and assistance as we discuss options and make the difficult decisions in the months ahead.

I appreciate your input. If you have any comments, questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at (530) 432-2630 or e-mail at pvfpd.chief@sbcglobal.net.