What Happened? Lights and sirens and the need to know

Photo by Steven H. Robinson

What Happened? Lights and sirens and the need to know

By Melanie Granfors

If you live near a fire station, seeing the engine or aid car roll of out the apparatus bay, lights flashing and sirens wailing is no doubt a fairly common occurrence. But the sense of urgency and the wondering "what is happening" is often hard to ignore. 

Shoreline Area News is often asked about such occurrences long after the fact. A resident might email and say "hey, I heard an explosion, and TONS of sirens a few nights ago around 11:00pm. Do you know what was going on?” Chances are it was not a fire, and that it was a very routine call. A lot of folks don't realize how many calls we receive each day, the nature of those calls, and the fact that we sometimes need six or eight personnel on scene. Those personnel come in different rigs... ranging from the huge Ladder 61 to an Aid Car, Medic Unit or Fire engine. 

Photo by Steven H. Robinson

Shoreline Fire responds to around 9,000 9-1-1 calls per year, averaging 15-20 per day. Eighty-five percent of those 9-1-1 calls are for medical emergencies or injuries. A substantial number of those calls are for falls, auto collisions, and non-emergency problems related to chronic illness. Most information about those medical calls is not released to the public -- and for good reason. Our patients' privacy is protected and we are very careful not to violate their rights. That is why you are discouraged from calling us to ask about what an Aid Car was doing at your neighbor's house, or what condition a patient was in when the Medic Unit transported him or her to the hospital. 

We never know when a call will be life threatening -- or involve multiple patients and agencies. We respond with the same game plan each and every time. We must get there in five minutes or less, be sure we have enough resources to deal with the problem, send a medical patient to the hospital as quickly as possible, and get back "in service" to be ready for the next call. These life-threatening situations, for the most part, do not make the news. Nor should they. Sometimes the best thing responders can do in a tragedy is to protect the victims' privacy.

Photo by Steven H. Robinson

Very frequently, we are co-responding to an incident with police. There could be as many as six or eight of our units (Aid Cars, Engines, Ladder Truck, Medic Units, MSO and Battalion Chief) responding -- along with several police officers. An example of this could be a cardiac arrest call, an altercation with injuries, several patients in a car crash, or other incidents that require multiple responders. That may sound newsworthy when it's happening. But those calls are a fairly routine situation for us, and not something we would issue a news alert about, unless there were related street closures, or if traffic was affected. 

If there is an event that could affect the public or public safety, The City of Shoreline, Fire Dept. and Police Dept. have notification systems in place, including using Twitter and FaceBook to post important messages about the impacts an incident may have. Check out @shorelinefire on Twitter and Shoreline Fire Dept. on Facebook. Follow us or "like" us to keep up with general news and incidents around the clock! You can also request information from us via those social media sites. 

Photo by Steven H. Robinson

Of course, if you feel worried, frightened or concerned about something that happens in your neighborhood, you can always call the business line at the Police or Fire Department, and ask for someone who handles public information. The public information line for Shoreline Fire is 206-533-6564. Be sure you have accurate information about the date and time of the call, and your reason for concern. 

And, of course, never hesitate to call 9-1-1 when YOU are having an emergency -- or if you witnessing one!