||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS |||
San Juan County’s Fire Marshal is pleased to share upcoming scheduled training burns as local fire and rescue teams prepare for the summer season.
Sunday, March 31st, 2024: San Juan Fire & Rescue will be holding a Wildland training burn for the education of the current fire academy class. Pending safe weather conditions, this Wildland training will be held on Station 31 grounds. Smoke may be visible from the corner Mullis St. and Argyle St. to passing drivers. San Juan County Dispatch and Friday Harbor Airport have been notified of this exercise. This training is invaluable for cadets as the hands-on experience will allow these upcoming firefighters to learn fire behavior and containment practices in real time in addition to their classroom learning these past few months. Our academy recruits will be joined by Orcas Fire & Rescue staff and volunteers, along with volunteers from Henry and Stuarts Islands, all excited to join in the training opportunity. The training is expected to begin in the early afternoon, concluding before 18:00.
Saturday April 6th, 2024: A donated structure at 106 Carter Beach will be part of a culminating exercise as a controlled burn for academy recruits and current San Juan Island Volunteer Firefighters. The 2300 sq ft, single story structure will be a generous replica of an average island structure that future crews may respond to, thus a highly productive training opportunity. Given the constraints of the site and neighborhood, San Juan Fire & Rescue kindly request that the public please refrain from observing this planned exercise. Nearby neighbors have been notified as well as partner agencies including San Juan County Dispatch. The event will take all day 09:00-17:00, with assigned crews for cleanup and fire-watch.
The safety of the firefighters and the public is of the utmost priority. San Juan Fire & Rescue conducts this Live Fire Burn Training Exercise in strict accordance with the guidelines and standards set by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA 1403) and WAC 296-305-05502. Trained instructors, fire chiefs, and the department safety officer will be present throughout the exercise to monitor and control the training environment, ensuring that all necessary safety precautions are in place.
No toxic fire suppression chemicals will be used in this exercise.
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