Call Volume Recap for Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue in 2020

/in

Emergency personnel for Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue responded to 8,827 calls for help in 2020, 64 percent (5,644) of which were for emergency medical service (EMS). Total calls dipped slightly compared to 2019 (9,127), but the percentage of EMS calls has stayed the same.

Fire Chief John Oliver says that these statistics are likely due to the pandemic. More people were staying home in the early stages of the mandated “stay at home” orders which meant fewer emergencies. However, the percentage of emergency medical calls held constant due to COVID-19 concerns or responses.

CKFR provides the highest level of emergency medical care for residents. Highly-trained Paramedics offer Advanced Life Support (or “ALS”), which means residents get Emergency Room-like care when they call 911. CKFR Paramedics can perform lifesaving cardiac procedures, surgical airway techniques, and provide intravenous medications to save lives when time is a factor. The Fire District also has portable hospital-grade ventilators in medic units, which have been used to treat patients with respiratory issues associated with COVID-19.

“Our community has invested in an EMS program that provides a 24-hour Paramedic response,” said Chief Oliver. “That’s the highest level of care possible that a fire district can provide from the time we arrive on scene and all the way to a hospital.”

The community’s EMS program is funded through a 6-year levy of $0.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value. Voters last renewed the levy in 2015, and it will expire at the end of the year. CKFR likely will ask voters to renew the EMS levy at the same rate sometime this fall.

dryer fire

/in

At 1:00 pm, a call came in for a fire in the Griffin Glen Apartments in Bremerton. On arrival, crews noticed smoke coming from building 5117. The fire was located and contained in a dryer in one of the apartments. Two occupants were treated and released on scene. The apartment is uninhabitable and Red Cross was called to assist the occupants. The County Fire Marshal was also dispatched.

Vehicle Into Building

/in

A traffic collision on Riddell this morning caused one car to careen off the road and land partially into the side of a self-storage office. CKFR crews extricated the driver and transported them to St. Michael’s Medical Center in Silverdale. The County Fire Marshal was dispatched to determine the structural stability of the building and the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the collision. The other driver involved was not transported.

14 Year Old Escapes House Fire

/in

The cause of a fire that badly damaged a Bremerton home on January 31st is still under investigation by the Kitsap County Fire Marshal’s Office. CKFR crews were dispatched at 8:50 am to the 15000 block of NW Rhododendron Court, Bremerton. Upon arrival, heavy smoke and flames could be seen coming from the home. The call was quickly upgraded to a second alarm and crews from Bremerton Fire and Navy Region Northwest responded to assist. It was reported that the only occupant home at the time was a 14-year-old male. He awoke to the sound of smoke alarms and quickly went to his neighbor’s house for help. His mom had been home earlier in the morning but wasn’t home at the time of the fire. The house suffered significant smoke and fire damage and was deemed uninhabitable. There were no injuries to occupants or fire crew.More information will be released when the investigation concludes.