Spokane County Fire District 4 adding 12 full-time firefighters

Spokane County Fire District 4 in north Spokane County is taking steps to hire a dozen full-time firefighters by April to add to the part-time and volunteer firefighters that already staff the district.

The district covers about 330 square miles, including the communities of Colbert, Chattaroy, Deer Park and Elk. It previously had a mix of full-time administrative staff and both part-time and volunteer firefighters.

Fire Chief Bill Neckels said the area has been growing and more firefighters are needed. “The growth in the district is certainly a driver,” he said. “The demand for service has increased significantly.”

So far this year the district has responded to about 4,100 calls, an increase of 730 over this time last year. It became clear that the part-time staff needed some help and that additional part-time staff wouldn’t be enough, Neckels said. “It’s a dollars and cents thing, really,” he said. “It starts making more sense to have full-time staff.”

The hiring is being done in stages. The first three were hired this summer. Another three will start in January and the rest will begin work in April. The hiring is being staggered because of the availability of funding, Neckels said. “We’re trying to do this to match our tax revenue,” he said.

All the new hires will be firefighter/EMTs except for three firefighter/paramedics. Neckels said the paramedics are needed because of the rising number of emergency medical services (EMS) calls the district has. “A significant portion of our call volume, 78 percent, is EMS,” he said.

It’s not just EMS calls that are increasing, however. There are also house fires, wildland fires, car crashes and more. “It’s all kinds,” he said. “They’re up across the board. With more people, you would expect the demand to increase.”

The district has 10 stations covering an area bordered by Pend Oreille County to the north and Stevens County to the west. The four “corner” stations are staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week and the station in Chattaroy, which is in the center of the district, is staffed the majority of the time, even if it’s not a full crew, Neckels said. Volunteers respond from the other five stations as needed.

The decision to add 12 new firefighters was deliberate, Neckels said. “What that would allow us to do is staff our four corner stations with at least one full-time firefighter per shift,” he said.

The plan is to have the full-time firefighters work for 24 hours, have 72 hours off, then work for 48 hours, for a total of three full days a week. Neckels said the schedule is borrowed from Chelan County Fire District 1, where he used to work. “We work somewhat of a unique schedule,” he said.

The new firefighters are needed to keep up with an increasing number of calls in the growing district, Neckels said. “We’re not a sleepy little fire district anymore, not when we’re running on 4,100 calls,” he said.