Letter From the Chief

On behalf of the members of Franklin County Fire Protection District #3, I am pleased to present the Fiscal-Year 2022 Annual Report. The annual report provides an overview of the past year as well as the District in general. We take tremendous pride in sharing our successes and interactions with our community.

Franklin County Fire Protection District #3 provides the best quality fire, emergency, medical, disaster response, and fire prevention services to the citizens of our communities, at the lowest cost possible while supporting creativity, innovation, growth, and stability. We are continually striving to better equip our District and provide firefighter training opportunities in an effort to increase both the safety of the residents we serve and the firefighters that respond.

Emergency call volumes have increased 49 percent since 2018, and the demands for service and hours spent by career and volunteers on the emergency responses continue to increase. The needs of our community have grown significantly, and I am proud of the hard work and commitment our team puts in managing these sometimes long and complex emergencies

Fire District 3 is considering asking voters for a fire levy lid lift in the fall on 2023 There will be a public process before any final decision is made and I want to share a list of fire district needs with you here. Revenue from a lid lift would fund one additional full-time firefighter and two seasonal firefighters during wildland fire season. It would replace firefighter gear, renovate Station 33 on Columbia River Road (Block 1) to allow for 24hour staffing, and replace an ambulance and water tender. The lid lift would also fund backup power at our fire stations so we can continue to operate if a natural disaster should occur. These improvements are necessary to save lives and property as well as maintain the Fire District’s risk rating which is associated with what you pay in homeowner insurance premiums.

The membersof Franklin County Fire Protection District #3 remain committed to ourmotto “Caring, Dedicated, Professional”. We look forward to another year of working for the health and safety of your family and appreciate your support!

Sincerely,

Michael C. Harris Fire Chief