The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

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WAITSBURG -- Not only is the nation focusing on the upcoming 10-year anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, but Touchet Valley residents are also thinking about the second anniversary of the big mill fire that destroyed Wait's Mill, Sept. 6, 2009. The mill gave Waitsburg its name and losing it meant the town lost part of its identity.

With these two anniversaries on our minds and the recent battle of the Whetstone fire, we can't help but think of our local first responders at this time. We are so lucky our volunteer firefighters and medical staff give up stability and time with their families, put themselves in dangerous situations and get out of bed at all hours of the night to help us in emergencies.

In the case of the recent Whetstone fire, first responders and local farmers acted quickly and effectively to keep a wind-fed blaze from destroying two rural homes and from jumping a ridge into acres of continuous standing wheat fields in the direction of Sorghum Hollow. That kind of success and the many other successes first responders achieve everyday with limited resources require cool headedness, experience and above all, dedication for very little pay.

Frank Reser, a 22-year veteran of the all-volunteer Waitsburg Fire Department said the community has always been supportive of the work it does.

The terrorist attacks on Sept. 11 didn't change that. While other communities received new volunteers after the attacks, most potential local volunteers were already offering their services to the local agencies.

The volunteers want to help out their communities with many wanting to be a firefighter since childhood, he said. Also, the camaraderie is very enticing. The group will go out and work on putting out a nasty fire together and the relationships they build are very strong, he said.

"A lot of us enjoy that aspect," Reser said.

The volunteers, now numbering about 30, don't get paid much, about $10 per call. When they have to help with larger fires outside of the district or for the forest service, they get paid by the hour through whatever agency needed their help, Reser said.

The busiest time of year is harvest season when the temperatures are high, the land is dry and the wind can carry big fires. Also, those who burn fields can have re-kindles, small fires that flare up after the main fire is put out, and the department responds to a few of those per year as well. Other than that, the department only sees about three or four structure fires per year.

The volunteers monitor the weather and try to stick around town for the weekend if the conditions seem right for a fire, Reser said. There is no solid plan to make sure volunteers are in town to answer a call.

"It just works," Reser said. "There's no schedule keeping."

With a solid number of volunteers, there are usually plenty of folks in town to answer calls. It's during work hours when a call may go unanswered longer because volunteers are busy at their day jobs, he said.

"It seems our numbers are a little thin then," he said.

Reser believes the department could use a few more volunteers to help out in the daytime hours.

With 20 years already under his belt, he said he plans to serve another four or five years until he has to retire. He loves volunteering for the department and his fellow firefighters, "but some parts of the job are better suited to younger, more agile people," Reser said.

Waitsburg also has three paid emergency medical technicians and 10 volunteers who answer medical calls.

"The community treats us pretty well," said Will Potolicchio, an EMT and lieutenant for the ambulance service. He has been part of the team since 2003.

They are on call all day and all night and train continuously to keep up on the newest medical procedures dealing with airway management and CPR, he said.

Potolicchio is a paid staff member and says the salary is reasonable. The volunteers get a small stipend. They get paid minimum wage for each hour they are on a call, he said.

The service receives about five to 10 calls per week and they vary throughout the day. He said there is no pattern to medical calls - they come when they come. He might have to answer a couple of night calls and then day calls.

"We help whoever needs us," he said.

Potolicchio said the hardest part about his job is not being able to spend a lot of time with family. He remains tied down to staying in the area in case of emergencies, but he manages to take some time off now and then. And at the end of the day, he loves his career.

"I wanted to become a police officer, got hooked (on this) and traded careers," he said with a laugh."

The ambulance service is always looking for more volunteers he said. This is a great volunteer position for those who love their community and simply want to lend a hand to neighbors.

"Just helping people - that's what it's all about," he said.

For more information, call 509-337-6149 for the ambulance service and 509- 520-7487.