Each year, the Office of State Fire Marshal (OSFM) celebrates exemplary service through its annual Golden and Silver Sparky awards. These awards represent the best of service and honor the work of the fire service and the public.

The Golden Sparky award recognizes a member of the fire service and the Silver Sparky celebrates a civilian or group. Both awards are for outstanding achievement in fire prevention or public fire safety education.

The OSFM received numerous applications of very high caliber. After careful consideration and review the OSFM was honored to award the Golden Sparky award to two fire service members: Gert Zoutendijk, Fire Marshal for the Lake Oswego Fire Department, and Steve Avgeris, Chief of the Colestin Rural Fire District (CRFD) in Jackson County. The 2020 Silver Sparky was awarded to Don VanDomelen, Suzie Dahl, and Mike De Roia — all building officials serving Columbia County, Columbia City, St. Helens, and Scappoose.

In nominating Zoutendijk, Lake Oswego Fire Chief Don Johnson noted: "Locally, Fire Marshal Zoutendijk is the backbone of 'all things prevention' for the City of Lake Oswego. From a robust Company Inspection program, to building plan reviews, to resolving prevention related issues — there is no one better to handle such a diverse workload."

Among his many accomplishments for the Lake Oswego Fire Department, Zoutendijk helped to secure a $250,000 grant from the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Authority. He remains active in the state Fire Code Committee and State Incident Reporting Advisory Group. He also played important roles supporting the state’s COVID-19 response at the state Emergency Operations Center this spring. His work included developing a training curriculum for fire marshals statewide for best practices relating to the pandemic. He also chairs the Education Committee with the Oregon Fire Marshals Association.

In her nomination of Chief Avgeris, CRFD Board Chair Peggy Moore noted Avgeris has led the CRFD from its start 36 years ago. The all-volunteer district now has several engines, a water tender, and a crew of volunteer firefighters, along with its volunteer Chief. Avgeris continues to provide oversight and lead training, as he has done for 36 years, with support from Cal Fire and the Oregon Department of Forestry. Thanks to his leadership and public education, no fire over the last four decades has resulted in any fatalities or large fires, and he has contributed to an overall greater fire awareness in the community, resulting in fewer human-caused fires.

The Oregon buildings codes will outline construction standards for replacement/repairs for structures. However, it is the 2019 Oregon Fire Code (OFC) that addresses other key components to the rebuilding process, namely fire department access and water supply. Cooperation and collaboration will be paramount among all entities involved within the rebuilding process in order to provide efficient and effective service and guidance to those who have experienced loss. In addition, flexibility in all areas will also be key with the challenges posed by the current economy and COVID-19 environment.

Access is a vital element of land development from a fire protection viewpoint. Often it involves a great deal of forethought, engineering, and planning, but once in place it is nearly impossible to alter or improve after development is completed. Rebuilding homes after wildfires, while incorporating existing access conditions, will need to be thoughtfully reconciled. Existing access should be reevaluated and, whenever possible, improved. Rebuilding homes after recent wildfires can be problematic because a burned structure indicates a site is prone to future fire risks once vegetation has regenerated.

Water is still the most effective tool for fighting wildland fires — when and where it can be obtained in sufficient quantity. The amount of water reserved for firefighting purposes and the size and type of delivery system provided depends on the degree of wildfire hazard involved and the type and location of the building.

In wildfire recovery areas, an approved water supply capable of supplying the required fire flow for fire protection may be challenging. Therefore, as noted in OFC Section 507.1, alternatives are available utilizing the Uniform Alternate Construction Standard for One- and Two-Family Dwellings as outlined in OFC Appendix D108, which are available to the fire code official who can recommend construction elements to the building official for the rebuilding application. OSFM envisions that these provisions would most often be applied to homes being enlarged or expanded from the original square footage. Specific to this alternate standard are items such as the installation of fire-resistive exterior wall and roofing materials and utilization of the wildland urban interface rules adopted by Oregon Department of Forestry.

The 2019 Annual Report Supplement is now available online. The report contains statistics and trends regarding statewide National Fire Incident Reporting System data, Community Right to Know data, Regional HazMat Emergency Response Team data, agency population and valuation resources, and personnel resources.

Below are some excerpts from the report, but please peruse the report for a more in-depth look at the data. The Office of State Fire Marshal hopes that this publication will be a useful resource for both fire agencies and the public.

In early October, the Office of State Fire Marshal (OSFM) helped to distribute 85,000 N95 masks across the Oregon Fire Mutual Aid System as a one-time allocation made available by FEMA, while fire service agencies supported the statewide response to wildfires.

The OSFM shipped the masks directly to county fire defense board chiefs, who then further disseminated to area fire departments and districts per local priorities.

These masks were dispersed for the protection of firefighting personnel and incident management team members against wildfire smoke, for fire camp safety, and personal protection in close quarters.

The masks shipped for this one-time distribution were labeled as "non-medical." For these masks, the CDC specifies that although these masks are certified for use by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), they are not approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The CDC explains some products that are approved by NIOSH as an N95 respirator and also cleared by the FDA as a surgical mask are referred to as "surgical N95 respirators."

Based on these CDC, NIOSH, and FDA definitions, the masks that were distributed are not approved as surgical-grade N95 respirators.

As such, users of these masks will want to consider the absence of the FDA’s "surgical mask" approval as to whether or not to use them locally for emergency responses to or interaction with individuals presenting with symptoms of COVID-19.

The OSFM is grateful to FEMA for this very generous offering that will adequately re-supply N95 masks used to protect firefighters from wildfire smoke during recent firefighting efforts. 

For more cooking fire safety tips, visit our webpage.

As part of the Office of State Fire Marshal’s efforts to build its capacity in the Emergency Response Service Division, the agency has re-established the Emergency Response Unit (ERU).

Mariah Rawlins, the OSFM’s Incident Management Team (IMT) Program Coordinator since 2014, will lead the ERU as its new manager. The ERU will consist of the IMT program, Agency Operations Center, GIS program, and all projects related to the Oregon Fire Service Mutual Aid System to include readiness and mobilizations.

Rawlins has been a strong advocate for the OSFM in its emergency response functions and for the Oregon fire service since she was hired in 2011 as the ERU Program Assistant.

Mariah brings extensive technical expertise with the Incident Command System and strong relationships with partner agencies to her new position. The OSFM plans to staff the now vacant coordinator position, as well as a new administrative specialist to round out the ERU and add capacity to its response capabilities.

Michele Peil joined the Office of State Fire Marshal’s Regulatory Services Division as an Office Specialist this May. In her role, she reviews, approves, and processes all liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) program licenses and processes and issues the OSFM’s Cardlock facility licenses. She also approves and issues all retail sales of fireworks permits and fireworks display operator certifications.

Peil last was employed at METCOM 9-1-1, where she had worked as a 9-1-1 dispatcher since 2003.

In addition to her extensive experience in emergency response, Peil has a bachelor’s degree in American Sign Language (ASL), and has also provided ASL services to several universities in western Oregon.

Peil spent three years in the U.S. Army, specializing in track vehicle repair while stationed Fort Riley, Kansas. There she was assigned to the 2/70th Armored Division and worked primarily on M1A1 Tanks. Her service to the division marked the first time the base had women serve in that capacity on the M1A1 Tank.

Peil also has three children. The oldest, 21, lives and works in Colorado, and the two youngest, fraternal twins, are 13. Her husband serves as a lieutenant in the Woodburn Fire District.

Peil is an avid outdoorswoman, enjoying camping, paddle boarding, hiking, and skiing.

If you are an emergency planner or first responder interested in accessing the information reported by employers, please register for a CHS Manager account. Due to limited licenses, we ask that agencies register for a single account so be sure to confirm your agency is not currently registered.

Our newly published CHS Manager user manual for planners and responders can be found here.

Please contact OSFM’s Community Right to Know program if you have any questions at (503) 378-6835 or by email at sfmcr2k@osp.oregon.gov. 

The FY 2021-22 Hazardous Materials Emergency Preparedness (HMEP) Grant application period is now open until the end of December. The recipients of the current HMEP Grant Cycle (FY 2020-21) are just beginning their grant projects, but preparations for the FY 2021-22 HMEP Grant Cycle, for projects completed between Oct. 1, 2021 and Sept. 30, 2022, are starting now.

The application can be found on the Office of State Fire Marshal website.

If you need more information regarding the application process, please contact Terry Wolfe: 503-934-8245 or terry.wolfe@osp.oregon.gov.

To learn more about the HMEP Grant Program, guidance on eligible planning and training expenditures, and other grant specifics, visit the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration’s HMEP grant webpage.

Heating equipment is a leading cause of residential structure fires and also home fire deaths. The Office of State Fire Marshal has created new social media images and updated its website, to encourage residents to prevent heating fires from occurring.

NW Natural Gas will also be posting safety information during the month of November. Follow them on Facebook (@NWNaturalGas) and Twitter (@nwnatural). They provide additional safety information on their website.

The National Fire Protection Association provides safety tips on their website.