The Windsor Fire Protection District has undergone several
significant changes since being formed as a volunteer fire
department in 1965 but according to WFPD officials, 2007 may be the
most momentous in department history. The year ended with crews
responding to a record number of calls and significant upgrades in
service thanks to additional funding.
Fire crews handled a record 1,986 incidents in 2007, well
exceeding the previous high of 1,884 in 2006. Medical aids
represented 66.26 percent of the calls, followed by public service
calls at 11.17 percent. Fires made up 7.91 percent, with a variety
of miscellaneous calls accounting for the balance. The majority of
calls (6.41 percent) occurred between 6 and 7 p.m., followed by
6.36 percent between 4 and 5 p.m.
In 2007 WFPD doubled its suppression staffing, hiring three new
captains and three new engineers thanks to the passage of Measure
K, a voter approved parcel tax. “The number of calls we had last
year strongly supports the community’s need for the additional
staffing Measure K enabled us to hire,” said Fire Chief Ron
Collier. “There were many instances where our ability to send a
second engine immediately resulted in a greatly improved level of
service. We are very thankful we had the additional staffing to
handle the significant call volume increase.”
Chief Collier went on to say that effective Jan. 1, 2008, the
District is providing “four-oh” staffing, meaning four firefighters
are on duty 24 hours each day. Between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. there
will be one engine at each fire station. The second engine will be
recalled to Station 1 over night as Station 2 was not designed to
accommodate sleeping quarters and is not seismically safe.
An agreement with the Town of Windsor to provide funding
contingent upon Measure K passage provided two other historic
events: the purchase of a ladder truck and construction of a new
station on the west side of town.
The purchase of a 75-foot ladder truck (known as a “quint”
because it provides five emergency response components: hose,
water, ladders, aerial ladder, and rescue equipment) was approved
by the Town Council at its August 15 meeting. The truck was ordered
on August 29, 2007 and is scheduled for delivery in April 2008.
Windsor Battalion Chief David Cornelssen, who chaired the truck
selection committee, said, “The addition of a truck to our fleet
represents a major change at Windsor Fire. It will enable us to
better protect our three- and four-story buildings and the people
who occupy them. It will also require that our staff training rise
to another, higher standard. And without our new staffing, we would
not be able to staff the truck.”
On May 16, the Windsor Town Council hired Mary McGrath, AIA, as
the architect for the new Station 2. McGrath, now with Beverly
Prior Architects, has designed more than 50 fire stations for
departments all over California, several of which are “green.” The
new Station 2 will be at least silver LEED certified and may
achieve gold certification, meaning both long-term reduced
operating expenses and immediate and long-term benefit to the
environment. Working closely with the Windsor Fire Station 2
Committee, McGrath designed a station that is aesthetically
pleasing, environmentally sound, and-of greatest importance to the
fire department-very functional. The Town Council voted
unanimously, on Dec. 5, to approve construction of the station as
designed. Ground-breaking is projected to occur in late summer
2008.
“We trust the taxpayers are pleased with the progress we have
made toward meeting our Measure K obligations,” Chief Collier said.
“The great thing about a ‘special tax’ is that, in our case, 100
percent of the monies generated must be spent on providing fire
department services. We sincerely appreciate the trust our
constituents place in us. Our primary goal is to ensure that every
taxpayer penny is spent efficiently to provide the highest level of
service to those who pay the taxes.”
