New CKFR Fire Chief

Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue is pleased to announce a new Fire Chief has been selected to replace retiring Fire Chief John Oliver. Longtime member Jay Christian will begin serving as Fire Chief effective July 1, 2022.

Chief Christian was born and raised in San Diego, California. Prior to his fire service career, he entered the US Coast Guard in 1993 and served 5 years as a Damage Controlman Second Class.

Chief Christian was hired with Central Kitsap Fire and Rescue in April 2000 as a Firefighter/EMT, and promoted through the ranks of Lieutenant, Captain, Battalion Chief, and Assistant Chief. During his time as a company officer, he served as the Training Lieutenant and in programs with an emphasis in special operations. He also served on the Kitsap County Technical Rescue Team for over 10 years as both a team member and a leader.

Chief Christian has an Associate’s Degree in Fire Protection and a Bachelor’s Degree in Fire Administration. He has served as both Operations and Support Services Assistant Chief with CKFR (2020-current) before being promoted by the Board of Commissioners to Fire Chief.

He was recently accepted into the Fire Service Executive Development Institute (FSEDI) after competing with new fire chiefs and chief officers from across the country and Canada to become a member of the 2022 cohort program.

The FSEDI is a year-long leadership-development program. It was created and implemented by the International Association of Fire Chiefs to provide new and aspiring chiefs with the tools they need to have successful and productive tenures. Members of the cohort will meet four times in the coming year.

Chief Christian is most excited to begin working as a trusted partner in the community and discover innovative ways to serve others as CKFR grows.

He lives with his wife, Jennifer, and their two teenage children in the Tracyton area.

First Graduating Class

Congratulations to the first graduating class of the Kitsap Fire Academy! The Wolfpack graduated today with a ceremony honoring their hard work and achievements.
Unfortunately we were unable to live stream the event, but we will be posting video and pictures next week. We’re so proud of these new firefighters – please join us in congratulating them all!

New Assistant Chief

We’re excited to announce our newest Assistant Chief, Kara Putnam, the first female to hold such a rank throughout Kitsap County’s fire service.
Chief Putnam has been with Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue since 2008.
She was born and raised in Nebraska and attended the University of Nebraska at Kearney on a track and field scholarship. After earning her Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Science, she attended University of Nebraska Medical Center and graduated with certification in cytotechnology.
Kara moved to Washington State in 1997, originally working as a cytotechnologist and eventually volunteering with King County Fire District #20 from 2007 to 2008, at which time she was hired as a firefighter with Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue. From there she was:
• Promoted to Apparatus Operator in 2013
• Promoted to Lieutenant in 2017
• Promoted to Captain in 2021
Other significant accomplishments throughout Chief Putnam’s career include:
• Committee member of the Apparatus Operator (AO) team who created our AO program
• Attended the Los Angeles Fire Department Leadership Academy
• Member of the CKFR Bike Team
• CKFR Firefighter of the Year in 2016
• Member of the CKFR Peer Support Team
• Academy Coordinator for the inaugural Kitsap Fire Academy in 2022
• Training Officer from 2020 to 2022
• Volunteer EMT bike rider for the Cascade Bicycle Club
Kara lives in Seattle with her wife, Margot, and two dogs.

Seabeck Structure Fire

Update 8:50: Ferrellgas is on scene to “flare” tanks to release propane safely from the fire damaged tanks.
Update 8:03: The fire is now extinguished. The County Fire Marshal will investigate the cause. Seabeck Hwy remains closed at this time while crews continue to keep their eye on a propane tank on scene.
Update 6:59 pm: Fire is under control. PSE has arrived on scene which will allow crews to finish extinguishing the fire once live wires are shut down. Seabeck Highway remains closed.
⚠️ Seabeck Highway is CLOSED due to a residential structure fire in the area of Seabeck Hwy and Leeward Ave NW.
All occupants are out of the home.

Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue Advancing Capital Facilities Plan with Second Phase 1 Project North Perry Community Fire Station (Sta. 45) Replacement.

On Monday, June 6th, 2022, 8:00 am, Central Kitsap Fire and Rescue will close the doors of the North Perry Community Fire Station located at 3725 Trenton Ave. NE. This fire station has been in service since 1965 built by the then Kitsap County Fire District # 9. It is scheduled to be replaced with a new state of the art two bay, five dorm Fire Station designed by the Rice Fergus Miller architectural firm in Bremerton, WA.
Project Description: This station will be approximately 8,600 square feet in size and include 2 apparatus bays, living and sleeping quarters for 5 personnel, a small public lobby, and commensurate working areas for station personnel.
Response Plan During Construction: Beginning June 6th, the CKFR response to the Illahee area will come from Station 41. There is no suitable location to house our personnel and apparatus during demolition and construction. Building code requirements are the same for a temporary structure or location as they are for a permanent fire station.
Fire and EMS response to critical calls county-wide utilizes “closest unit dispatch” or AVL
• There are no jurisdictional boundaries for these high priority calls, the closest resource is sent to begin mitigating the emergency
• In the Illahee area the closest resource is often a Bremerton Fire unit from their station on Olympus Drive
• When a mutual aid resource is dispatched, CKFR also sends our resources to take over care on an EMS call or mitigate the fire emergency
The district will monitor responses very closely and make necessary changes as needed.
Construction is estimated to go from June 2022 – June 2023. In the coming weeks, the district is planning to hold a groundbreaking ceremony to kick-off the project.
Current bond project information is available on the district’s webpage at www.ckfr.org.
For questions about our response plan, please email Deputy Chief Jeff Sorenson at jsorenson@ckfr.org

Poulsbo Man Rescued From Cliff

Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue crews were dispatched just after 1:00 pm this afternoon for a rescue off NE Passage View Lane in Poulsbo.
The man and his wife were trying to reach their dog who had gone over the embankment. We’re sad to report the dog is deceased. Crews were able to help the wife the rest of the way down. She was not injured, but her husband was stuck halfway on the 60 foot embankment.
While firefighters rigged a system to lower two rescuers, CKFRs drone flew overhead giving crews a clearer look at the situation. Crews were able to reach the man and lower him to safety. He was then able to walk back up the embankment stairs that were nearby.
Navy Region Northwest provided mutual aid and Kitsap County Sheriff’s Deputies retrieved the dog.