Thanks for putting fire bond on ballot
Editor:
I want to thank the Board of Directors of the Lebanon Fire District.
They unanimously agreed to put a bond on the November election ballot to replace our main station and some apparatus.
Apparatus replacement has to happen as a unit ages and becomes unreliable. That’s pretty cut-and-dried.
Replacing a station is more difficult, and, as a firefighter who works there, I’d like to share some of the health and safety problems with the facility.
First, the fire station will not survive an earthquake, which is when you will need us most.
Second, living quarters are at the farthest possible distance from the emergency apparatus, which delays response times.
We sleep in rooms with no windows, sprinklers or smoke alarms, which is unsafe.
The engine bays also lack an adequate exhaust removal system. Cancer deaths among firefighters are extremely high and diesel exhaust is a known carcinogen.
We are grateful for your consideration of this funding request. The fact is that our community has outgrown the current station, and it poses health and safety concerns for firefighters and the people we serve.
Lt. Brett Kibble
President, Lebanon
Professional Firefighters