Rural fire department growing with local help

Jana Mathia, Whitman County Gazette | Nov 19, 20200

DIAMOND—New vehicle, coveralls and members, oh my! The Diamond Fire Department has seen a lot of improvement since the Labor Day fires, mostly due to support of other fire departments in Rural Fire District #11 and a Rural Community Grant.

“There was a lot of cooperation that happened to get this done,” Rob Shindler, two-year fire chief, said.

Shindler was specifically speaking of the addition of a 2000 Ford Med-Tec aid rig and receiving an aid license. That means now the department can respond to medical calls and do initial patient care before an ambulance arrives.

The aid rig was gifted to the Diamond department after it retired from the Colfax Ambulance Company. It came fully equipped, saving the smaller fire department the expense of outfitting. The Steptoe Fire Department, also part of Whitman County Rural Fire District #11, had the state aid license and helped Diamond do its paperwork.

With the fancy new rig, the department also has some fancy new duds; blue PPE coveralls. The entire 13-person department received the new coveralls thanks to $3,500 from the Northwest Farm Credit Service Rural Community Grant program.

“It’s been a big help,” Shindler said. The grant covered the cost of the coveralls and a new AED defibrillator machine for the aid rig.

The grant was awarded Sept. 22.

The department has grown by more than 50% with five new member joining recently. The newbies are from the younger generation of area families that have served on the department, a person who moved into the area and one young man from a local farm family who helped out during the Manning Fire and was invited to join. Shindler noted the additional members have decreased the average age of the department by 10 years. The new members are in their late teens, early 20s. Beforehand, the youngest member was in his 30s.

Shindler said the department has need for a variety of people, not just those willing to go into a burning building.

“We can find a job for almost anybody,” he said, noting people are needed to run the truck and do safety checks.

The Diamond Fire Department responds to approximately 35 calls per year. About 25% of calls are field fires. The rest includes car accidents, medical calls and house fires. “It’s a little bit of everything,” Shindler said.

The department meets twice a month for training so members can get the experience needed so when they come to their first call, they are able to help. This includes how to deploy a hose, driver training, first aid, putting on gear and ventilators and how to vent smoke from a building.

“We’re trying to prepare everybody for every stage of the call,” he said.