Clarkston Professional Firefighters Local 2299

08/24/2026

If you are concerned about why our community does not have reliable fire engines available for an essential public safety service, we encourage you to attend the Clarkston City Council meeting tonight at 5:30 PM and make your concerns known during public comment.

Ask your city leadership what is being done to ensure Clarkston firefighters have dependable, fully functioning fire apparatus available when you call 911.

We encourage residents to direct their questions and concerns to:

Mayor Monika Lawrence
Fire Chief Darren White

Public Safety Committee:
• Sheila McDougall
• Pat Holman
• Russ Evans

Our community deserves to know what the plan is to ensure firefighters have reliable equipment to protect lives and property.

08/21/2026

🚨ENGINE CRISIS🚨

Your Clarkston firefighters want to be as transparent with our community as possible. Right now, the reliability of our fire apparatus is putting both public and firefighter safety at risk.

Since the beginning of July, our reserve engine, Engine 82, has been out of service and is expected to remain out of service for at least another month.

At the same time, our frontline engine, Engine 81, is experiencing a failing pump control system that can cause the pump to lose pressure or operate intermittently.

What does this mean for our community?

If Engine 81’s pump fails during a structure fire, firefighters may not have a reliable water supply to safely make an interior attack. That directly impacts our ability to protect lives and property and puts firefighters at greater risk.

On July 4, while operating at a brush fire, Engine 82 suffered a cylinder sleeve failure that allowed coolant into the motor. The damage requires the engine to be replaced. Engine 82 is 25 years old and has reached an age where NFPA guidance recommends retirement. E82 has also failed its annual pump test for the last several years.

Just one day earlier, on July 3, Engine 81 responded as the first-arriving engine to a fire. As firefighters deployed hose lines, the pump lost pressure, resulting in no water to the attack line. Further diagnostics identified the pump control board as the likely problem, and it now needs to be replaced.

This is a serious concern.

One of our most basic responsibilities is providing reliable fire suppression to the City of Clarkston. With our 25-year-old reserve engine out of service and our 12-year-old frontline engine experiencing pump problems and approaching the end of its frontline service life, we cannot guarantee our apparatus will operate to its full capability when our community needs it most.

This situation did not happen without warning.

Two years ago, Clarkston firefighters formed an apparatus committee to begin the process of replacing our aging engine. The committee researched manufacturers and worked to develop specifications for an affordable and efficient engine that would meet Clarkston’s needs.

A bid was presented to the Public Safety Committee, consisting of the Fire Chief, Mayor, and three City Council members.

That bid was denied.

Our concerns regarding the condition and reliability of our fire apparatus have been brought to the attention of the Fire Chief, Mayor, and Public Safety Committee. To date, these concerns have received no response.

We believe Clarkston citizens should be asking:

❓ As an essential service, what does reliable fire suppression mean for the City of Clarkston?

❓ Why was a bid for a replacement fire engine denied while purchases of other city vehicles were approved?

❓ Why does the Fire Department not have a dedicated apparatus replacement fund to ensure critical emergency vehicles are replaced before reaching this point?

Your Clarkston firefighters are here to serve the citizens and visitors of Clarkston. We will continue providing the best service possible with the resources available.

But we need reliable apparatus and equipment to do our jobs safely.

We are operating in crisis mode. These issues need to be addressed before an apparatus failure during an emergency results in serious injury, significant property loss, or loss of life.

Ask your city leaders why you don’t have dependable fire suppression apparatus ready when you need it.

Our community deserves reliable fire protection. Our firefighters deserve reliable equipment.



Washington State Council of Fire Fighters | Ricky Walsh - IAFF 7th District | City of Clarkston Fire Department

08/20/2026

Clarkston firefighters responded yesterday to a mutual aid request from Whitman County Fire District 14 for a wildland fire along the Snake River breaks near Blyton Landing.

Boots on the hillside, supported by aerial resources, were able to stop the fire’s forward progression.

Great work by all agencies and resources involved.

08/12/2026

Clarkston firefighters responded yesterday alongside our regional partners to a wildland fire off Highway 12 west of Clarkston. Crews battled the fire throughout the afternoon using direct attack tactics with the support of aerial resources before transitioning to structure protection operations into the night.

The incident has since been state mobilized, and crews continue working toward containment. We appreciate the hard work and coordination of all the fire agencies involved and ask the public to avoid the area and give firefighters plenty of room to work safely.

08/11/2026

Great Opportunity close to home!

Welcome to Spokane County Fire District 8 Spokane County Fire District 8 provides a full range of services that include

08/07/2026

Your local firefighters training to better serve your local community.

A Shift took advantage of the slightly cooler temperatures this morning and a break in calls for service to train on downed firefighter rescue techniques.

Regular training like this prepares firefighters to rapidly locate, remove, and care for a firefighter who becomes injured or trapped during an emergency. Continuous training ensures we’re ready to respond effectively—not only for our community, but for each other.

08/02/2026

Yesterday’s strong winds created elevated fire danger across our region, and we want to thank our community for being cautious and doing your part to help prevent fires. Thanks to everyone’s efforts, we’re happy to report that Clarkston Fire had no fire-related incidents during the wind event.

While yesterday was a success, we’re not out of the woods yet. Hot temperatures and breezy conditions are expected to continue over the next couple of days, so we ask everyone to remain vigilant. Avoid activities that could spark a fire, stay aware of changing conditions, and report any signs of smoke or fire immediately.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the communities across Eastern Washington that have been impacted by devastating wildfires. We are grateful to everyone working tirelessly to protect lives, homes, and property.

Thank you again for helping keep our community safe.

— Your Clarkston Firefighters

08/01/2026

With the anticipated weather outlook for today we ask everyone to be hyper vigilant and extra cautious. This Extreme red flag event is very rare. Attached is the expected potential Avista outage map for the City of Clarkston. If the power is turned off they will check lines and turn power back on when the severity of the wind event has decreased. Stay up today with the Avista 800 numbers or Avista’s website. Thank you for your help in keeping our community safe!

UPDATE: 11:28 - dispatch contacted CFD to advise that Asotin Co. emergency management expects shut off time to be around 1pm.

07/27/2026

What keeps us motivated?

Yesterday, in the middle of a busy day of emergency calls, your Clarkston firefighters found time after clearing a call to stop by a 3-year-old’s birthday celebration.

Our firefighters don’t just work here—we live here, raise our families here, and are proud to be part of this community. Whether it’s responding to an emergency or helping make a child’s birthday a little more special, we’re honored to serve the people of Clarkston every day.

Thank you for allowing us to be a part of your lives. These moments remind us why we do what we do.

07/25/2026

Clarkston Fire is once again experiencing an extremely high call volume. Within the last hour alone, our 3 firefighters on duty have been responsible for responding to 4 medical emergencies.

With minimal to no off-duty firefighters available for callback today, mutual aid has already been requested from Lewiston to help maintain emergency response.

Today’s Red Flag Warning and critical fire weather conditions only increase the risk to our community. We ask everyone to please use extra caution, look out for one another, and be patient as we triage emergencies and respond with the resources available.

Our firefighters have been sounding the alarm for months about the need for adequate staffing to safely serve our community. Passing the EMS levy is a critical step toward maintaining emergency medical services, but long-term, reliable funding solutions are also needed to ensure Clarkston has the staffing and resources our community deserves.

Our firefighters remain committed to providing the highest level of service possible with the resources available, and we appreciate the continued support and understanding of our community.