Ketchikan Fire Department

07/31/2026

🫐 KETCHIKAN FIRE DEPARTMENT PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT 🫐

It’s Blueberry Arts Festival weekend, which means Ketchikan is about to become the only place where you can watch people race giant slugs, paddle handmade blueberry boats, throw blueberries at each other, and somehow call it “culture.”

Here’s how you can help keep our firefighters from becoming part of the entertainment:

🫐 If you’re entering the Blueberry Ball Roll, please roll the blueberry… not yourself.

🐌 If you’re racing slugs, remember: they’re already moving at emergency-response speed for a slug. No need to encourage them.

🚣 If your handmade blueberry boat starts becoming a handmade blueberry submarine, wave at us before you disappear.

🏃 If you’re running the 5K, remember it’s a race—not a reason to test whether our ambulance crews can keep up.

🫐 During the pie-eating contest, chewing is still faster than the Heimlich.

🚒 And if you see our crews around town, we’re probably there keeping everyone safe—not judging your blueberry-themed wardrobe. (Okay… maybe just a little.)

Have an amazing Blueberry Arts Festival, support our local artists, enjoy the incredible events, and remember: we’d much rather see your festival photos on Facebook than your name on our incident report.

Happy Blueberry Festival, Ketchikan! Stay safe, have fun, and may your only emergency this weekend be deciding between blueberry pie and blueberry jam. 🫐🚒

07/30/2026

When you protect a community surrounded by mountains, water, steep terrain, and aging infrastructure, having the right equipment matters.

Over the past several years, the Ketchikan Fire Department has responded to a number of incidents that highlighted the need for additional technical rescue capabilities. Those calls helped justify the purchase of our **new-to-us Rescue Truck**, which previously served the **Los Angeles Fire Department** as a collapse rescue unit.

Rather than purchasing a new apparatus at a cost well into the millions, we worked to acquire and refurbish this specialized vehicle on a very limited budget—stretching every dollar while bringing an incredible resource to our community.

This project has truly been a team effort. While the fire department led the refurbishment, we could not have accomplished it without the support of many others across the City. Our **Ketchikan Maintenance Shops** have invested countless hours repairing, fabricating, troubleshooting, and helping bring this apparatus into service. Our **Information Technology Department** has also been instrumental in ensuring the truck has the communications and technology it needs to operate effectively in today's emergency response environment. This rescue truck is a great example of what can be accomplished when City departments work together toward a common goal.

One of the final pieces of the project was protecting the truck itself. A complete repaint simply wasn't in the budget, but preserving the bodywork and preventing future corrosion was important if we wanted this truck to serve Ketchikan for many years.

That's where **Sign Pro** stepped in.

This week, their team lightly sanded and sealed areas of surface rust before applying an outstanding wrap and graphics package that not only protects the truck's exterior, but also reflects the spirit of Ketchikan and the mission of the Ketchikan Fire Department. The finished product looks incredible, and we're grateful for their craftsmanship, generosity, and support of public safety.

Although we're still completing a few minor repairs and upgrades, the Rescue Truck has already been in service for one month and has responded to:

🚒 1 fire response
🚗 1 motor vehicle collision
☣️ 1 hazardous materials response
🛠️ 1 rescue call/extrication call
🚑 4 emergency medical responses because we had multiple calls occurring at once.

It's already proving its value, and we're confident it will continue serving our community for many years to come.

Finally, we'd like to sincerely thank the residents of Ketchikan for your continued support of your fire department, and thank the **Ketchikan City Council** for believing in the vision of expanding our rescue capabilities and investing in the safety of our community.

Projects like this don't happen because of one person or one department—they happen because people across an organization are willing to work together, solve problems, and find creative ways to make the most of every taxpayer dollar. We are incredibly grateful to everyone who had a hand in bringing this rescue truck to life, and we look forward to seeing it serve the Ketchikan community for many years to come.

07/29/2026

🚨 Ketchikan, we've got a problem...

Apparently, someone decided one week of free, nationally recognized training wasn't enough... so we packed THREE outstanding courses into one week.

From Mental Health for Emergency Responders, to Youth Firesetting Prevention, to the Alaska Firefighter Cancer & Wellness Forum, there's something for nearly everyone in public safety. Best of all... it's FREE.

We know what you're thinking:
"But Chief... August is fishing season."

Good news—you can catch a salmon in the morning, attend world-class training during the day, and still spend the evening arguing about whose fishing story is the least believable.

So whether you're a firefighter, EMT, law enforcement officer, investigator, school official, behavioral health professional, or just someone who wants to learn from some of the best instructors in the country, we'd love to have you in Ketchikan.

✅ Free registration
✅ Nationally recognized instructors
✅ Practical, real-world training
✅ An excuse to visit Southeast Alaska (as if you needed one)

Scan the QR code on the flyer and reserve your spot. Bring a coworker, bring your department... just don't wait until the week before and tell us, "I meant to sign up."

We look forward to welcoming everyone to Ketchikan Public Safety Training Week – August 16–22, 2026.

Come for the training. Stay because your flight got delayed by Southeast Alaska weather. 🌧️🐟🚒

07/26/2026

Behind every fire department is an admin team making sure the important things don’t get overlooked. Last weeks mission? Inventorying our CPR manikins. On the bright side, they were the quietest coworkers in the building… and If you’ve never watched someone seriously debate whether a plastic torso belongs in Column A or Column B, you’re missing out on peak local government entertainment.

The annual CPR manikin census is complete. No new manikins were born, none migrated south for the winter, and none were eaten by bears. Successful inventory.

At KFD we solute or Admin Staff!

07/26/2026

07/23/2026

⚾🚒 When Firefighters Get a Ladder Truck... and a Baseball Field Gets Involved 🚒⚾

Yesterday, the Ketchikan Fire Department conducted new driver/operator training on our aerial ladder truck at Norman Walker Field. Training with the ladder truck is critical—it helps ensure our operators are ready to safely and effectively use one of the most valuable pieces of firefighting equipment we have.

But while we were there, we noticed the roof had become the unofficial home of what appeared to be every baseball hit a little too well this season. 😄

So, in the spirit of community service (and because baseballs apparently don't know how to climb back down), our crews retrieved dozens of stranded baseballs from the roof and returned them to the field staff.

We're happy to report that all baseballs were safely rescued. No ladders, firefighters, or baseballs were injured during the operation. The only thing that suffered was the baseballs' dream of becoming permanent rooftop decorations.

We love finding opportunities where training benefits our community. Whether it's preparing for emergencies or conducting a highly successful "Operation Home Run Recovery," we're proud to serve Ketchikan in every way we can.

⚾ To all the players: Keep swinging for the fences... just maybe not that hard! 😉

07/22/2026

Over packing a leaking oil drum found along the highway

07/21/2026

🚒 Incident Response – Transmission Fluid Spill

This morning, the Ketchikan Fire Department responded to the intersection of Mission Street and Main Street to assist with a hazardous materials cleanup after a forklift experienced a catastrophic transmission failure, releasing transmission fluid onto the roadway.

The responsible company was already on scene and immediately began cleanup efforts. We would like to thank them for their quick actions and hard work to contain the spill and prevent it from spreading further. Their prompt response played an important role in minimizing the environmental impact of the incident.

Ketchikan Fire Department personnel assisted by securing the area, blocking traffic to prevent vehicles from driving through the contaminated roadway, and coordinating the incident with our partner agencies.

The City of Ketchikan Streets Department also responded to assist with roadway cleanup. In addition, the U.S. Coast Guard and the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) were notified and responded to the scene to provide oversight and assistance.

Once the absorbent materials were applied and the cleanup was completed by the responsible party, the roadway remained closed until it was safe to reopen, helping prevent the spread of the product and ensuring the safety of motorists and pedestrians.

There were no injuries associated with this incident.

We appreciate the cooperation of everyone involved in bringing this incident to a safe and successful conclusion and thank all of our partner agencies for their assistance.

07/20/2026

**Water Rescue Response – Mill Street**

Yesterday at approximately **6:14 p.m.**, Ketchikan Fire Department crews were alerted by a citizen knocking on the station door and reporting that a person was in the water near **624 Mill Street**.

Firefighters and paramedics responded immediately and located an individual in the water who had been there for an unknown amount of time. With the assistance of several bystanders, crews were able to safely remove the patient from the water. The individual was treated on scene and transported to **Ketchikan Medical Center** for evaluation and treatment of hypothermia.

We would like to thank the members of the public who quickly alerted us and assisted our crews. Their actions helped bring this incident to a safe conclusion.

🌊 **A reminder about water safety:** Even during the summer months, Southeast Alaska's water temperatures remain dangerously cold. Cold water can quickly lead to cold shock and hypothermia, significantly reducing a person's ability to swim or stay afloat. If you're spending time on or near the water:

* Always wear a properly fitted life jacket.
* Never underestimate the effects of cold water.
* Avoid going alone whenever possible.
* If you see someone in trouble, call **911** immediately and, if it can be done safely, throw them a flotation device rather than entering the water yourself.

Thank you to everyone who helped during this incident, and please continue to stay safe around the water.