May 14--Clarkston Fire Chief Steve Cooper said Monday a residential fire that caused multiple injuries over the weekend was not an incident that should've required mutual aid, but he is not opposed to getting agreements with neighboring agencies back on the table.
"By the time four of our firefighters were injured, we were a bit thin and could've used another half dozen of our volunteers," Cooper said.
Fire crews from adjacent agencies, such as Asotin County Fire District No. 1 and the city of Lewiston, weren't called for backup because it wasn't a life-threatening incident, Cooper said. No mutual aid agreements with those agencies are in place.
Asotin County Fire Chief Noel Hardin said Monday his crews would have responded if the commanding officer called for backup.
"If they put out a call for help, we would have been there," Hardin said.
Although no lives were threatened and the fire at 1040 McCarroll St. may not have merited mutual aid response, Cooper said he is interested in re-establishing agreements with other fire departments for future incidents.
"Every community will have emergencies that overwhelm the resources of every agency," Cooper said. "Having mutual aid agreements benefits the broader community. Every department knows we're ready to talk about mutual aid when they're ready."
Officials are continuing their investigation into what sparked the blaze at the McCarroll Street triplex that damaged two units and injured five people, including four firefighters, early Sunday.
Resident Vicki Timmerman, 63, was taken by ambulance to Tri-State Memorial Hospital, where she was treated and released, according to a police report.
Three firefighters also were taken to Tri-State, where they were treated and released. A fourth was hurt but not taken to the hospital. Their injuries included a shoulder dislocation, a sprained ankle, smoke inhalation and heat exhaustion.
Cooper said he isn't releasing the names of the injured firefighters, as per his policy.
"I don't believe I should release their names, and I don't know how that serves the community," he said. "I want to protect my personnel from individual scrutiny."
The shoulder injury occurred when a firefighter fell through a weak spot in the floor. He was checking for hot spots, and the fire was under control at that point, Cooper said. The ankle injury occurred when a firefighter missed a step. The firefighter who suffered from heat exhaustion worked too long without time in rehabilitation, and it is unclear why the smoke inhalation occurred, he said.
"We need to verify his equipment works correctly," Cooper said. "We want to identify how to prevent these injuries in the future. They're all properly trained."
The fire chief said a dozen firefighters responded to the fire at first, followed by two additional firefighters. Clearwater Paper Fire Department provided a rehabilitation truck with one additional firefighter. During the fire, two emergency responders had to leave the scene for a medical call, he said.
One of the housing units suffered significant damage, a second suffered severe damage, and one was undamaged, Cooper said. No estimate of loss has been determined.
The American Red Cross provided support for residents and found temporary shelter for those who couldn't return to their homes.
At Monday night's Clarkston City Council meeting, Councilor Terry Beadles praised the fire department for its work on the McCarroll Street fire.
"I appreciate the good job our fire department did," he said.
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Sandaine may be contacted at [email protected] or (208) 848-2264. Follow her on Twitter @newsfromkerri.
Copyright 2013 - Lewiston Tribune, Idaho
