Menu

Welcome

Mission Statement

The objectives of this Division shall be to further enhance the education of all Fire Service Administrative Support by conducting workshops and seminars; to increase the proficiency of Fire Administrative Support by establishing a network sharing of information systems through various channels of communication; and to faciliate a statewide standardization wherever possible in all phases and aspects of the Fire Administrative Support field for the benefit of the Fire Service.

Recent Fire Administrative Support News

Posted: Oct 20, 2020
Comments: 0

Greetings all~

At the yearly business meeting of the WFAS, usually a part of the annual conference, 2020 elections were held. Two Regional Representative terms were up this year along with that of the Secretary and Chair. Cathy Blakeway, Tumwater Fire, will continue to serve as a Regional Rep and Tasiya Deering, Moses Lake Fire, was reelected to the position of Secretary. Kristen Cole chose not to run again for the Regional Rep position she has held but has opted to remain on the board as the Hospitality/Activity committee chair. Slita Bradley, Benton County Fire District 4, was chosen to fill that Regional Rep position. Caity Karapostoles, Clallam County Fire District 3, was elected to serve for the next two years as Chairman when Mykel Montgomery stepped down. Mykel will stay on the board as Past Chair, allowing her to help deliver the 2021 WFAS Conference in Chelan postponed from October 2020. A huge shout out to everyone for stepping up to run for positions on the board and to volunteer on the various committees, along with everyone who continues to serve as board/committee members. It takes all of us to create and maintain the valuable network that is the WFAS! And along those lines, the Vice Chair position is open if you or someone you know is interested, please let me know as soon as possible. In keeping with our policies and procedures, the vacancy will be filled by a majority vote of the Executive Board at our next meeting. The person chosen will serve until the next election at the 2021 WFAS Conference,

In lieu of this year’s conference and workshops, a number of webinars are being planned for our group. Check the website and the group’s Facebook page for more information as it comes available.

Please feel free to contact me or any of the other board/committee members, if there is anything we can help you with. I welcome comments, concerns and suggestions!

Take care and stay safe.

As always,

Caity K

WFAS Chair

Read more
Posted: Apr 21, 2020
Comments: 0

Wednesday April 22nd

Read more
Posted: Jun 27, 2018
Comments: 0

 

 A recording of the hour long webinar How to Apply for a Local Records Grant is now available at Washington State Archives’ website at:

 https://www.sos.wa.gov/archives/RecordsManagement/Local-Records-Grant-Program.aspx

 

The Online Grant Application form will be available on July 2, 2018.

If anyone has questions or would like assistance in planning and preparing their application, please email recordsmanagement@sos.wa.gov.

Read more
Posted: Apr 25, 2018
Comments: 0

On behalf of your Washington Fire Administrative Support (WFAS) Board and Committee Members, we would like to acknowledge your hard work, dedication and commitment to the fire service and the work that you do. We all play an integral part in the departments we work for and the communities we serve, but perhaps don’t always get the acknowledgement that goes along with it. I hope everyone feels valued for their efforts and feels the support of your network of peers within the WFAS Section. Enjoy your day and I am so excited to see 96 of you in Walla Walla at our annual conference next week!

 

Ashley Becker, WFAS Section Chair

Read more
Posted: Apr 2, 2018
Comments: 0
In accordance with the Washington Fire Chiefs' Bylaws, and the WFC Fire Administrative Support current Protocols, the recommended updated version of the protocols has been posted 30 days before conference

If you would like to see a version noting all of the changes, that document is shown as well. Feel free to share any concerns or comments regarding this updated document with us at: wfc@washingtonfirechiefs.org 

The updated protocols will be voted on by members at the WFAS conference in Walla Walla, Washington on Monday, May 7th.

Read more
Posted: Feb 21, 2018
Comments: 0
Nominations need to be submitted to the WFC office by Friday, April 20, 2018 to kathleen@washingtonfirechiefs.org.

  • Nominee can be nominated by any WFC member, belonging to any WFC Section – please include: nominees name, position title, years of service;
  • The nominee must be a current member of the WFAS;
  • Nomination should list the nominee’s administrative accomplishments and contributions during the previous year as well as their leadership abilities, demonstration of professional performance and personal character.  A short story should be submitted to enhance the nominee’s accomplishments.
Read more
Posted: Aug 8, 2017
Comments: 0

We currently have an opening on the WFAS Executive Board for an Eastern Representative, partial term, to serve through May 2018 (until the conference in which an election will take place for a two-year term).

 

Please submit a Statement of Interest to abecker@centralpiercefire.org, no later than Tuesday, August 15, for consideration at our upcoming Board Meeting in Walla Walla.

 

Feel free to reference the WFAS Board Campaign on the website for more information on Board involvement or reach out to a Board Member.

 

Read more
Posted: Apr 26, 2017
Comments: 0

On behalf of the WFAS Board, we would like to thank you for your endless dedication to the fire service and your commitment to learn and grow.

Read more
Posted: Apr 6, 2017
Comments: 0
In accordance with the Washington Fire Chiefs' Bylaws, and the WFC Fire Administrative Support current Protocols, the recommended updated version of the protocols has been posted 30 days before conference

If you would like to see a version noting all of the changes, please contact us. Feel free to share any concerns or comments regarding this updated document with us at: wfc@washingtonfirechiefs.org 

The updated protocols will be voted on by members at the WFAS conference in Olympia, Washington.

Read more
Posted: Jan 31, 2017
Comments: 0
Nominations need to be submitted to the WFC office by Friday, April 28th of this year, 2017.

  • Nominee can be nominated by any WFC member, belonging to any WFC Section – please include: nominees name, position title, years of service;
  • The nominee must be a current member of the WFAS;
  • Nomination should list the nominee’s administrative accomplishments and contributions during the previous year as well as their leadership abilities, demonstration of professional performance and personal character.  A short story should be submitted to enhance the nominee’s accomplishments.

Read more
RSS
12

Theme picker

FIRE ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT SECTION UPCOMING EVENTS

Upcoming Events

Theme picker

FIRE ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT BOARD & COMMITTEES

Editor’s Opinion: I Made the Big One

Editor’s Opinion: I Made the Big One

Editor’s Opinion | Chris Mc Loone

No lie—the hardest part of my job is deciding what to write each month in this column. Do I reminisce? Do I try to make it a lesson? Do I call out something in the issue? To be honest, what I’ve been thinking about most recently is “the big one.”

Back in February, my fire company, and more than 60 others over the course of a week, responded to a fire at an industrial facility in our first due. I’ve been in my fire company for almost 32 years now. During that time, I’ve responded there on any number of occasions for automatic fire alarms, machines on fire, chemical exposures, etc. I don’t think it would be inaccurate to say that over the years, a major fire in this facility was always in the back of our minds.

The company was founded more than 100 years ago and, over time, the original structure has been added onto numerous times, creating a very expansive facility. As we arrived on location, we knew, not only from reports prior to our arrival but also from what we saw in front of us, that this was a working fire.

I’m not going to get into the operations at the fire, the lines laid, or the complexity of the job here. As you might expect, as I write this, the final report has not been issued. But, like many firefighters who respond to such incidents, I’ve spent a decent amount of time thinking about the event overall, my actions during it, and postincident responses.

Like many facilities built more than 100 years ago, the location of this complex is in an area that was mostly fields with a creek and railroad tracks behind it. Today, there are residences, ball fields, and commercial businesses surrounding the complex. Obviously, over the years, the response area changed quite a bit and so has our response planning to it.

A number of things stand out to me about the incident. First, it is an excellent case study for drone usage at such a scene. The police department drones were requested and deployed early in the incident, allowing the incident commander (IC) to track the fire’s progression and determine where master streams were being most effective. During overhaul, the drones helped not only direct master streams but also used installed thermal imaging cameras that picked up the hot spots.

Resources beyond the norm are also what stand out to me. The IC ended up requesting available resources from refineries. He looked into airport resources and what might be available from the Philadelphia (PA) Fire Department. One refinery sent a monitor capable of flowing up to 4,000 gallons per minute. And, this incident is the first one I can remember in Glenside, Pennsylvania, where the county’s fieldcomm unit responded.

What also stand out to me are postincident responses. As I said, when the factory was founded, fields, for the most part, surrounded it. Today, there is an entire residential neighborhood around it as well as businesses. We drove past this facility for years and years, but an incident of this magnitude hadn’t occurred. Neighbors understandably have been on edge, and there have been numerous responses to the site since the IC placed the fire under control, mostly for odors. It’s more important now than ever for us all to remember that these folks are not only neighboring the facility, but they are also our neighbors, and we have to be patient with them as they try to get their lives back to normal after evacuation or shelter-in-place orders.

And, of course, it is weird for me to think that I made the big one. In 1991 and 1992, there were two large fires in my district-one in a supermarket and the other in a church. They were “the big ones” before this fire, and while I knew it was possible, I never thought there would be another one like them. I’m grateful for the experience but will be fine if I don’t make the next “big one.”

The post Editor’s Opinion: I Made the Big One appeared first on Fire Apparatus: Fire trucks, fire engines, emergency vehicles, and firefighting equipment.

Print
Posted: May 13, 2025,
Categories: Fire Mechanics,
Comments: 0,

Theme picker