DEPARTMENT DYNAMICS

Siletz Valley Fire District is dynamic emergency service provider that has a goal of offering superior service with ethical spending. The district is funded with tax dollars and includes 33 square miles of the greater Siletz area. The City of Siletz, Confederate Tribes of Siletz Indians, Logsden, and surrounding rural residents make up the fire district. The Siletz River encloses three sides of the City of Siletz, and draws many visitors for its fishing and recreation opportunities.

The current tax rate is set at $1.33 dollars per $1,000 dollars of assessed property values. These tax dollars are used to support the districts operations and mission of protecting its community. A five member board of directors governs the district.  The BOD is tasked with oversight, which ensures that money is spent ethically, that policies reflect the districts values, policies are upheld, and that major decisions reflect the vision and the best interest of the district.

The fire district is primarily volunteer, averaging around 18 volunteers. Currently, a full time fire chief, and a full time A/O firefighter work business hours during the weekdays to ensure coverage during normal working hours. These positions are funded with federal grants. The district also employs a part time clerk to ensure accountability with district business.

The fire district operates out of two stations. Station 1, is located in the middle of the city of Siletz and is the main station of operation. This station holds offices, a class room, a bedroom, and bays for four apparatus. Board meetings and trainings are usually located at the main station. Station 2, is located in Logsden, about 7 miles out of town. There are four bays with various apparatus, a storage container, and two water tanks for rural water supply.

The district responds to an average of 300 emergency calls per year. Most of the calls are EMS in nature. SVFD provides fire protection, ems first response (non-transport), motor vehicle accident response, water rescue, and participates in a county rope rescue team. Also, the district is proactive with fire prevention and education, CPR training, community awareness, and a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). SVFD also responds to mutual aid requests from other fire agencies and state wide conflagration call outs for large wild land fires.

The culture of SVFD is that of a brotherhood, where our members all look out for each other and help out our team members when they are in need. The volunteers make up the Siletz Valley Firefighters Association. They operate with separate by-laws and are organized to promote community wellbeing outside of emergencies. The association holds various fundraisers and events throughout the year and uses the money to help community programs or purchase needed items for the fire district. They also hold various events that designed to promote community wellbeing, like the annual haunted house and a food drive for local families around Christmas time.