Hit and Run Driver Creates Mess on Camino Canada

Glenview: On Monday, August 16th at 4:06 PM, the Lakeside Fire District dispatched an engine company to a report of flooding in the area of Camino Canada and Los Coches Rd. On the arrival of Engine 3 (Lake Jennings Station) the crew discovered water arching across the roadway from a large irrigation line that had been damaged.

Firefighter-Paramedic Bryan Peters inspects a leak on a large irrigation pipe. Crews quickly shut down the leak.

Witnesses state a vehicle struck the water line and left the area. A master control box for the areas irrigation was also damaged.

Crews were able to shut down the water and refer the matter to the local development agency. CHP is investigating the incident. If you have information about this incident please contact the El Cajon CHP office.

Submitted By: Captain Mark Grow, Lakeside Fire Protection District

Filling the Boot for the MDA

Lakeside Firefighters were out in force Thursday morning raising funds and awareness for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA).  The International Association of Firefighters has been partnered with the MDA for decades, raising over $275 million since 1954 though local fund raising such as this and various other methods.  The money raised helps the MDA fund worldwide research efforts to eradicate 40 neuromuscular diseases.  The contributions of the firefighters also go towards MDA's summer camps for children, professional and public health education and other programs. 

The Crews from St. 3 and St. 26

Every year the Lakeside Fire Protection District partners with our local branch of the MDA to go out and do our part to help the MDA achieve their goals.  Both on and off duty personnel take to the streets from 6:30 am to  9:00 am at two of our busiest intersection in the district.  This year we had all crews from all stations able to get out to help.  During the two and a half hour period we were able to raise over $4,000 for the MDA.  We realize this money comes directly from the pockets of the citizens we serve and we appreciate their compassion and commitment to this issue.  As with all of the charity events we help with, all of the money goes directly to the charity.  We are happy to make this donation to the MDA in the name of the citizens of Lakeside.  If you live in Lakeside (or happened to be driving through yesterday morning) we appreciate your help! Thanks to the caring citizens of Lakeside we are consistently able to make healthy donations to the charities we support.

To see all of the great work that the MDA does on a daily basis please go to their website at: www.mdausa.org .

The banner says it all

Firefighters Line the Street to "Fill the Boot"

Story Submitted by:  Firefighter / Paramedic Bernie Molloy
Photos By: Firefighter-Paramedic Eric Stamm

VIAL OF LIFE

VIAL of LIFE is a program that the Lakeside Fire Protection District provides to its citizens to help them keep track of there medical information and to assist emergency personnel if they are ever called to your home. The Vial of Life is designed to speak for you when you can't speak for yourself and provide information to emergency personnel that can allow them to treat you quickly and appropriately.  This was originally designed for the elderly and disabled, but is a great tool for anyone. 

The Vial of Life is a small plastic case with a magnet on the back allowing it to be placed on your refrigerator.  Inside the vial you will find and a slip of paper explaining the importance of having this available to paramedics and a brief description of what will take place if the fire department is ever called to your home for a medical emergency.  Along with this slip of paper you will find a sticker and information on where to place the sticker.  Last you will find the patient information card.

Here is were all of your personal and medical information is written down for paramedics.  If you are ever unconscious, this is where we will look for your name, birth date, insurance, and medical information.  All of this information is not only needed for the paramedics to care for you, but it is also necessary information for the hospital.  The hospital will need this information to enter you into there system to allow family members to locate you if you were by yourself.

You can see that this can be a very useful tool, but it needs to be kept up to date. It is very important that every time you receive a new medication, new doctor, or new insurance that this card needs to be up dated.  Citizens can pick up a Vial of Life at our administrative office located at 12365 Parkside st. in downtown Lakeside.  

By: Firefighter/Paramedic Matthew Buzzell

Engine 1 Gets A Shine At The El Capitan High School Band & Color Guard Car Wash

Engine 1 gets some TLC

Firefighters from Lakeside's Riverview fire station (fs1) participated in a car wash fund raiser Saturday to support the El Capitan High School Band and Color Guard. The money raised will be going to the First Annual El Capitan Invitational Field Tournament for small bands to be held November 6, 2010 at El Capitan High School in Lakeside.

No lack of enthusiasm here

This fundraiser is from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Saturday, August 7th, at the Napa Auto Parts on Woodside Ave. in Lakeside. The crew of Engine 1 paid for the engine to be washed out of their own pockets and said that the El Cap students were enthusiastic and did a great job of making Engine One shine!

El Capitan Band and Color Guard members with Capt. Darby, FF/PM Jordan and E-1

Story and Photos by: Carl Chiodo, Lakeside Fire Engineer

Drew Auto Group Hosts Vehicle Extrication Training

La Mesa: Two years ago, the staff at Drew Ford-Hyundai-Volkswagen (La Mesa) recognized the need to expose first-responders to the quickly advancing technology used to make new cars some of the safest vehicles ever produced. With this safety came advancements in construction and metallurgy that required a "re-think" on how occupants could be effectively extricated from these automobiles.

Toby Chess reviews new construction and safety innovations in todays vehicles.

One could say that the modern engineering of these vehicles is based on keeping people from being trapped and injured during impacts. With energy absorbing zones and load transference elements, crews needed to know how to get into one of these engineering marvels without unnecessary delay.

Looking for other sponsors of this event, Drew Auto Group soon found sponsorship from State Farm Insurance and Dupont. With the ball now rolling, additional sponsors jumped on-board to make this a "state of the art" event (see the complete list below).

Steven Carpenter instructs a firefighter on door removal.

Instructors Toby Chess and Steven Carpenter were brought in to teach the event. As experts in their fields, they packed the four-hour event with discussions about construction techniques, airbags and safety systems, hybrid vehicles, and new extrication techniques. The last two hours of the class allowed the attendees to actually use some of these techniques on vehicles.

Lakeside Firefighter-Paramedic Chris Williams using cutters to remove a roof.

Firefighters deal with an "under-ride" collision.

Firefighters complete a dash-roll (note the position of the steering wheel). This evolution becomes necessary if the victim is trapped by the dash, or the legs are trapped below the dash area.

Firefighters from throughout San Diego County attended the training. These classes are especially valued as cars are increasingly hard to find to practice these operations.

You have better trained firefighters due to these fine sponsors.......thank you!

Drew Auto Group (Ford-Hyundai-Volkswagen)
State Farm Insurance
Dupont
Auto Club of Southern California
Allstate Insurance
Kent Automotive
Enterprise Rent-A-Car
West Auto Wreckers
Finishmaster
California Autobody Association
FS3-Holmatro Rescue Tools

Instructors:
Toby Chess
Steven Carpenter

Submitted By: Captain Mark Grow, Lakeside Fire District

Lakeside Firefighters Tackle McWest Lane Fire

Lakeside, CA -  Lakeside Firefighters from the Riverview station (Station 1) were dispatched today to the area of McWest Lane in Lakeside for the report of a vegetation fire.


View Lakeside Incidents and Story Map in a larger map

When E1 and M1 arrived at the scene, they found a small, quick moving fire in light, flashy fuels that had the potential to reach several structures.  Bystanders attempted to put the fire out,  but were overrun by the heat. Crews made a rapid attack on the fire, preventing it from reaching any of the threatened houses.  The crews were able to keep this fire to a relatively small area of less than an acre and no homes were damaged.

As we come into summer, it is important to remember how quickly a small spark can turn into something much larger.  The fuels in this vacant lot, as can be seen in the pictures, were extremely dry.  These fuel characteristics can be seen throughout the county today and will remain the same throughout the summer.  This is a good reminder to do the required clearing around your house.  For information about how to make sure you are in compliance feel free to contact your local fire department.

Captain Barnes dons his protective equipment before starting a hoselay

As is shown above, firefighters must wear protective gear to attack fires in the wildland setting.  This was a relatively small scale fire but the protective equipment worn here is the same equipment we wear on fires such as the Cedar Fire and Witch Creek Fire.

Firefighters halt the lateral spread of the fire

These light, flashy fules can be very dangerous to fight fire in.  These fine fuels allow fires to spread very quickly.  If there is a sudden gust of wind the fire can change from a small spot to several acres in a very short time.  Fortunately, the Lakeside firefighters on the scene of this fire were able to quickly put out the flames and keep the fire from becoming much more of an incident.

Mopping up the fire

Fire Sprinklers Prevent Major Lakeside Blaze

Lakeside, CA - While returning to quarters from another call, the Engine 1 crew from Lakeside's Riverview fire station (fs1) noticed a ringing fire alarm on a multi-occupancy commercial building in the 11900 block of Woodside Ave. on Monday evening, August 2, 2010. Engine 1 Captain Wes Barnes requested a first-alarm commercial structure assignment when his investigation revealed water flow from the building's sprinkler system and moderate smoke showing from the structure.

Engine 1's crew forced entry to one of the roll-up doors and located the source of the smoke utilizing their thermal imaging camera. The small fire had been extinguished when a single-head was activated from the wet-pipe sprinkler system installed in the building.Crews removed the smoldering material from the building and then focused on removing the remaining smoke and water.

Other fire units attending this incident included E4, T4, and M4 from Santee; E2, E3, B1, and 4101 from Lakeside. SDSO and CHP assisted with traffic control. The cause of this fire is under investigation.

This incident is a pointed reminder of the ability of sprinkler systems to extinguish fires in many types of occupancies. Despite a popular misconception, this fire was extinguished by a single sprinkler head resulting in minimal water damage.

Story by: Captain Scott Culkin, Lakeside Fire District
Information submitted by: Captain Wes Barnes, Lakeside Fire District

Lakeside Firefighters help with Fire in Anza Borrego State Park

In the early morning hours of Saturday, August 1st, 2010, firefighters from Lakeside's Blossom Valley fire station (fs26) responded as part of Heartland Strike team 6440C to the Scissors fire. The incident was near the 14-mile marker of County S2, threatening the Anza Borrego State Park. The fire had started the night before, and was burning on both sides of S2. Initial attack fire crews had worked through the night, and the Heartland Strike Team was assembled and dispatched to assist units still at the scene. Strike Team 6440C was assigned to Div. A, and was tasked with mop-up and patrol. Work consisted primarily of mopping-up the residual hotspots, and containing any flareups that would occur. County Copter 12 was requested to assist with any flareups that occurred. Due to the terrain, vegetation, and challenging access, work proved difficult and slow. Weather on the valley floor was 96 degrees, with a relative humidity of 7%. Unfortunately, Lakeside Brush 26 developed mechanical problems and would eventually need to be towed back to the Lakeside Fire repair facility.  


Strike team assignments such as this are very common for the agencies of Southern California.  With mutual aid agreements in place all throughout the state, agencies provide assistance to one another when it is needed. These mutual aid agreements make it possible for Lakeside Fire Department to substantially augment our response capabilities when we have a fire that calls for more resources.

Engineer Williams and Firefighter Fox work on mopping-up the fire

A view of the type of vegetation available to burn in the desert

Copter 12 arrives to help with flare-ups

Brush 26 has a mechanical issue

Brush 26 catching a ride home

Story and pictures provided by: Captain Jerry Daoust, Lakeside Fire District
Submitted by: Firefighter / Paramedic Bernie Molloy, Lakeside Fire District