Greetings friends and neighbors
of Fire District 9
My name is Richard Coffland, I am a volunteer fire fighter, an emergency management specialist, and I have served as your Fire Commissioner for the past five years. This page is paid for by my personal funds.
I have worked hard to help our communities develop Wildfire Protection Plans, install a new radio tower to improve emergency communications, share information within our community by setting up a facebook page ((7) Lincoln County Fire District 9 | Grand Coulee WA | Facebook) improve our relations with our neighboring fire protection teams across county lines, and update our Charter and By-Laws.
My goals for the next term are:
Reduce our risk to loss.
Improve our infrastructure.
Work toward improved insurance rates.
Many of you may not be familiar with the work we do as Fire Commissioners, and even fewer know that we do this without compensation. Read below to learn more.
More about Fire District 9
Fire Protection District 9, is one of the smallest districts in all of Washington State. We have an annual budget of under $20,000 a year to provide protection to over 280 homes, and seven square miles of land. We are very unique in that almost half of our district borders Federal land (Bureau of Reclamation, National Park Service, and Bureau of Land Management).
Even though we can’t stop a fire from starting, we have found ways to reduce our risk of loss through prevention and preparation, such as, Community Wildfire Protection Plans. These plans are managed by your local Home Owners Associations and Property owners. They set annual goals and establish guidelines to reduce burnable materials in and around residential areas, provide roadside cleanups, and set up quality construction of new homes.
This District is managed by three Fire Commissioners each serving six-year terms. Our small budget cannot support any form of salary and although the state allows for reimbursement of our expenses, each commissioner has waived the option to receive such funds. That means we are volunteering our time to help you.
Our focus is to contract for emergency services, keep the residents informed and work toward improving the districts infrastructure.
Right now, only one small part of our district (GeoStar drive) is protected by fire hydrants connected to a community line. Which means any fires in our district must be fought with the water brought on each truck which is only about 300 gallons per truck.
Two ways to improve our resources are to provide more trucks or install water hydrants and the supporting water lines. Both options are expensive and will take time.
Contact Us
Best way to reach Richard is by emailing at cofflandrw@yahoo.com.
I am also a volunteer fire fighter, secretary/treasurer for a local Masonic Lodge, volunteer with American Legion, a full time employee with Bureau of Reclamation at Grand Coulee Dam, and a wheat farmer and cattle rancher with the Rosenberg Ranch. All this means I don’t have a lot of spare time, so I do appreciate your patience if I do not reply immediately.