Letter: Supervisors criticized for decision (Nov. 4)
Having spent nearly 40 years in the fire service and realizing the necessity of having critical first responders available when needed, it appalls me to see what three Madera County supervisors did when they voted to close the Ahwahnee and Raymond Fire stations through the winter months.
I applaud Capt. Jerry Rigg and all of the few volunteers who are left to try and maintain some type of assistance when needed but, as it was stated, they are not always available for responding to every emergency call.
Now the people in our area are stuck with a one-man engine coming from Oakhurst or Yosemite Lakes Park, which will add up to six to 10 minutes in response time and at least that amount of time to get an ambulance into our area. What a farce.
Do our supervisors know what will happen when a house in our area is on fire? You can kiss it good-bye.
With that said, there is no doubt that our homeowner policies will greatly increase thanks to our inept supervisors in the valley. Maybe they can pick up the increase for us.
Oh, my God, I forgot, they didn’t cut any of their emergency services in the valley.
In my humble opinion, the Ahwahnee Area Council and the residents of Raymond need to put forth a major undertaking and make a massive showing at the Board of Supervisors meeting and demand our fire stations be manned the year around.
Further, I have had some severe medical problems within my family over the past couple of years, and thank God I had the professional services respond in a timely manner for their assistance.
If the board feels that the people in Ahwahnee or Raymond don’t need what most people have throughout the country, and something happens in my home, and it fails to provide a timely response, you can bet you’re going the see the biggest lawsuit Madera County has every seen. Trust me.
Dale Miller,
Ahwahnee
Board meeting saw galvinization
At the Oct. 20 Board of Supervisors meeting, we all experienced some unusually amazing things. It was a day of contrasts. While witnessing a strong divergence in opinion among the esteemed members of the Madera County Board of Supervisors, we saw a solid, galvanized accord among the arts, wine, food, entertainment, lodging, education and other business communities. We even saw two of our proud (and sometimes at odds) Native American tribal representatives coalesce in support of the Yosemite Sierra Visitors Bureau and their proposal to self-fund a Tourism Business Improvement District.
The topic was the self assessment by the lodging industry to continue promoting tourism in Madera County after a 25-year funding agreement with the Yosemite Sierra Visitors Bureau was recently terminated by the current Board of Supervisors due to budget shortfalls.
Such widespread community support for an issue which will cost resident taxpayers nothing is rare and may not be ignored. The people spoke and government listened. The following is excerpted from an unrelated statement by Madera County Supervisor Frank Bigelow, as quoted and published by The Madera Tribune on Thursday, Oct. 1.
“This is where government needs to get a grip and start looking at the broader things. The government is not meant to be a bully, but to be a helpful hand.”
Yes, Oct. 20 was a good day in a time when we all could use a few more good days.
Ray Krause,
O’Neals
I want to follow up on the Oct. 22 letter by Dale Miller of Ahwahnee concerning the closure of Raymond and Ahwahnee Cal Fire Stations during the non-season. Like Dale, I had nearly 40 years of professional fire service experience, the first nine years with the agency now identified as Cal Fire.
The National Fire Protection Association issues standards that are adopted by government agencies nationwide. Most of these standards are models used to develop codes that provide for fire and life safety issues.
NFPA Standard 1710 requires a minimum staffing of four persons per engine company. The standard also requires that the first fire company should arrive within a four-minute travel time 90 percent of the time.
There is a federal requirement, as well as NFPA Standard 1500, that a minimum of four persons be on scene before entering a hazardous atmosphere: two to enter the area and two to remain outside, monitoring the safety of the crew inside.
Madera County has chosen not to follow those standards with regard to staffing of fire equipment, response times, and personnel safety. Now Madera County has chosen to forsake the safety of residents in the eastern portion of their county in favor of file clerks, building inspectors, pot hole fillers, and the myriad other non-public safety personnel they employ.
I am not casting aspersions on any county workers; they all provide necessary and useful services, however public safety must be considered at the top of the pyramid when it comes to prudent use of limited funds. Placing a large number of citizens at greater risk is absolutely intolerable and I would certainly follow Dale’s lead again, pursuing legal action against an entity that does not provide for its citizens.
Don Cohn,
Ahwahnee