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January 2, 2008 It is my pleasure to welcome you to the Salinas Fire Department website. Over the next several months you will see significant changes to the website. It is our intention to provide you, our customers, with the best information possible regarding your fire department and how to protect yourself from the adverse results of fire and other emergencies that may affect you. The Salinas Fire Department is comprised of 96 firefighters, fire inspectors, chief officers, and support personnel who provide professional and fiscally responsible emergency response and public education programs to the residents of the City of Salinas. These services are provided 24 hours per day, seven days per week from six fire stations with six fire engines, one ladder truck, and one rescue unit. We respond to approximately 10,700 emergencies annually with an average response time of four minutes and eleven seconds. The Salinas Fire Department maintains local, regional, and state partnerships that enhance our ability to protect the community. We work closely with our counterparts at the Salinas Police Department to provide the safest response possible during any emergency situation. Our department participates in local, regional, and statewide mutual aid plans that allow us to receive additional resources for large-scale emergencies. In return, we provide resources, as requested, when our neighboring jurisdictions need assistance. At no time, however, do we leave our community unprotected during these responses. We are prepared to manage a large-scale emergency. We maintain regular communication with local, state, and federal emergency management organizations. The City of Salinas maintains a primary and secondary Emergency Operations Center that can be activated to effectively manage any large-scale incident. These centers are required by law and they allow the city to streamline the request for additional resources and open the door to state and federal disaster assistance funds. My question to you is. are you prepared? Are you and your family prepared in the event of a fire in your home? Do you have an escape plan? Do you have a functioning smoke detector in the hallway and every sleeping room in your home? The two leading causes of fire responses in the City of Salinas are cooking mishaps and children playing with fire. Take a moment and be proactive; take measures to prevent fires in your home and educate your family about fire prevention and how to protect yourselves should a fire occur. It can save a life. Be aware of your activities when outside of the home as well. Insist that all members of your family wear helmets and other appropriate personal safety devices when riding bicycles, skateboards, roller blades, and other recreational devices. Obey all traffic laws. Cross the street only at a designated crosswalk and always look both ways before crossing the street. These small items can make all of the difference. Thank you for taking the time to visit our website. We will strive to bring you the latest information about the department and ways to keep you and your family safe. Follow the links we have posted to find out more about fire and life safety initiatives and education. As partners, we will reduce the devastating effects of fires and other emergencies on our community. Yours in prevention, education, and protection, |
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