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HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

As a result of the Great Seattle Fire of 1889, the City of Kirkland organized its first Fire Brigade in 1890. Kirkland’s residents watched across the shores of Lake Washington as the Great Seattle Fire of 1889 destroyed Seattle. The first paid Fire Chief was hired in 1928. The first paid firefighters for the City of Kirkland were hired in 1970. As a tribute to their heritage, the Kirkland Firefighters refurbished its original motorized pumper, a 1929 American LaFrance. It is on display at one of its stations, and is driven in the annual City Of Kirkland July 4^th Parade


PERSONNEL

Fire Chief

J. Kevin Nalder was appointed Director of the Fire and Building Department and City Emergency Management in May 2009. Prior to his appointment with the City of Kirkland, Chief Nalder was Deputy Chief of the Salt Lake City Fire Department. Chief Nalder began his career as a firefighter in 1985, spent five years as a firefighter/paramedic, and gradually worked his way up through the department ranks to achieve his current position.

As Director of the Fire and Building Department and City Emergency Management, Chief Nalder oversees the offices of the Deputy Chief of Administration and City Emergency Management, the City Building Official and the Deputy Chief of Operations.

Chief Nalder may be contacted at jnalder@kirklandwa.gov

 

Operations and Emergency Services Division:

• Fire Operations and Emergency Medical Services has 3 shift Battalion Chiefs, 10 Captains, 11 Lieutenants, and 66 firefighters.
• The Training Division consists of a Battalion Chief and a Captain.

Work Schedule

Shift staffing is done on a three shift-platoon rotation. The schedule is a 48/96 rotation with 17 K-Days a year for a 48-hour workweek.

Staffing Levels

The City of Kirkland staffs five fire stations with a minimum of 19 paid personnel on-duty per shift.

• Three engine and aid stations, staffing 3
• One engine and aid station, staffing 5
• One truck and aid station, staffing 3
• Shift Battalion Chief, staffing 1

Kirkland Fire handles all BLS treatment and transport and is supported by Redmond Fire Department for ALS treatment and transport. Both Kirkland Fire and Redmond Fire Medic One are part of the King County Medic One Program.

Vehicles and Apparatus

Front Line Apparatus

• Engine 21 2005 H&W Spartan 1500 gpm pump with 500 gal. tank
• Engine 22 2003 H&W Spartan 1500 gpm pump with 500 gal. tank
• Engine 25 2003 H&W Spartan 1000 gpm pump with 500 gal. tank
• Engine 27 2010 H&W Spartan 1500 gpm pump with 500 gal. tank
• *All engines are equipped with both foam
• Truck 26 1997 Simon/LTI 100’ tillered aerial, 1250 gpm pump with 300 gal. tank
• Aid 21 2005 Ford E450 Road Rescue
• Aid 22 2005 Ford E450 Road Rescue
• Aid 24 1989 Ford Cayel-Craft Van
• Aid 25 2007 Ford F450 4x4 Road Rescue
• Aid 26 2002 Ford E450 Road Rescue
• Aid 27 2001 Ford E450 Road Rescue
• Aid 29 2006 Ford E450 Road Rescue
• Battalion 21 2008 Chevy Suburban 4X4 Sport Utility Vehicle
• Deputy Chief of Operations 2006 Dodge Durango 4X4 Sport Utility Vehicle

Specialized Apparatus

• Air Unit 21 2007 H&W Spartan

Color of Apparatus

All apparatus are red with white striping.

Maintenance

The City of Kirkland maintains all department vehicles at the City Shops. The department has two SCBA-certified technicians. The service shop is at Station 27. The air compressor and cascade system is located at Station 26.

Communications

Incident reporting from the public is achieved through the use of an Enhanced 911 system. This E-911 system provides both the address and phone number of the caller, which improves our ability to gain accurate information from the caller. This in turn helps to reduce errors and reduce response times to emergencies.

Communications are provided by a joint operating agreement known as the Eastside Public Communications Agency (EPSCA). EPSCA was created as a result of a County wide public safety bond to bring 800 MHz radios to our region. EPSCA is a sub region provider of 800 MHz radio communications for police, fire, public works, and school districts.

Fire dispatching is provided by contract with NORCOM. We are part of a regional dispatch system, which has been in place for more than twenty years. This regional dispatch allows for automatic aid to be provided in a seamless fashion. Agencies operating under the dispatch center’s agreement for service disregard jurisdictional boundaries and send the closest emergency response resources.

Running Card Assignments

• High Value and Residential Fires: four engines, a ladder company, an Aid unit, two Battalion Chiefs, an MSO and an air unit.
• Rescue Response: an engine, a Ladder company, an aid unit, an Automatic Aid medic, a Battalion Chief, and an air unit.
• Traffic Accidents: an engine and an aid unit
• Freeway Accident Response: two aid units (travelling in opposing directions), a ladder company and a Battalion Chief*
• *For all freeway responses, the Battalion Chief is dispatched.
• Aid Response: aid unit
• Medic Response: aid unit, and an Automatic Aid medic
• CPR: aid unit, an engine, an Automatic Aid medic, a Battalion Chief, an MSO and police*
• *The Battalion Chief will request a chaplain at his/her discretion.
• The Incident Commander will request for the Safety Officer when needed.

Automatic/Mutual Aid

Kirkland Fire responds on automatic aid to its five neighboring cities and Fire Districts. Those neighboring cities and Fire Districts include: City of Bellevue, City of Redmond, City of Woodinville, City of Bothell and Northshore Fire District #16.

King County is divided into five zones to provide for county wide coordination of fire suppression, emergency medical, rescue, and haz-mat. The Kirkland Fire Department is one of nine agencies in Zone 1 that participates in the task force and strike team program.

ISO Rating

Class 4 WA State Survey Rating for Service Area

Future Plans

The software, aviation, and wireless telephone industries have increased the population and commerce to the region. With the increased commercial and residential development, and population growth, the City of Kirkland is establishing plans to provide the necessary emergency services associated with this growth.

During the current year the department will place in service one new Aid Car and one new engine to replace current apparatus.

The department has Auto Vehicle Locators and the Global Positioning System to improve personnel accountability and as a means to decrease its emergency response time. The goal is to achieve an average response time of less than 5.00 minutes.

Finally, the recent joining of the Training Divisions by the three fire departments will eliminate duplicating efforts among the departments and improve training for all personnel.

With the continued growth in the region, the future presents many challenges to Kirkland Fire. With a combined effort from the Fire Chief and uniformed personnel, the department will be able to implement plans to maintain the excellent professional service the community demands and deserves.