Where the sirens are heading
From house fires to medical aid: A look at calls Yuba County firefighters responded to in 2018
Editor’s Note:
WASHINGTON – The Trump playbook on dealing with foes is well-documented: If attacked, strike back 10 times harder; zero in on your enemy’s weakest spots; go personal. ... From house fires to neardrownings to medical aid, area fire departments respond to dozens of calls each day to help keep Yuba-sutter residents safe.
Fire personnel are expected to have diverse skills to be able to respond to an array of calls.
Here’s a look at the calls Yuba County fire personnel responded to in 2018 and what it means for the department and its residents:
Marysville
In the city limits, firefighters, year over year, responded to about 200 fewer calls in 2018 – for a total of 2,991. Marysville Fire Chief Ron Karlen believes the decrease may be thanks to vegetation clearing last summer in the Hollywood homeless encampment area (between the Marysville levee and Simpson Lane), which most likely reduced the department’s calls a fair amount.
He said there were also fewer fires in the Thorntree encampment near 14th Street.
“The guys were going out there daily or a couple times a day,” Karlen said Thursday.
Here, personnel are responding to about 9 or 10 calls per day – 80 percent of the calls are for medical aid and many times calls are overlapping, which can be challenging for the small department.
Linda
Calls for service in Linda have been steadily increasing over the years, Battalion Chief Kyle Heggstrom said Thursday.
Firefighters responded to 4,260 calls last year; that’s 71 calls more than the 4,189 calls in 2017. July was responsible for the most calls for service with 417 calls. But the jump in calls from 2016 to 2017 was 238 calls more. In 1993, they responded to just 1,402 calls.
Heggstrom points to population increase in the district, as well as the ease in calling for aid.
“In this day and age, it’s easy for people to call 911,” he said.
Last year, the department averaged about 11 or 12 calls per day, all without an increase in personnel.
“We’re handling more calls for service with the same staff level,” Heggstrom said. “I think that’s across the board.”