Editorial
January 29, 2013
Good reasons to attend health fair
Save the date! The annual Issaquah/Sammamish Health & Safety Fair has a whole lot of reasons why you and your family should plan to attend, 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Feb. 9 at Pickering Barn.
Perhaps you’ve been meaning to get your family more prepared for emergencies. There is still time this year for a big winter storm to knock out power for days on end. Will you be ready?
The Issaquah Citizen Corps Council, Issaquah Medical Corps and the city of Issaquah will be at the fair with timely information to help you get started.
Who’s News
January 29, 2013
Local Realtors earn regional leadership posts
Joan Probala
Joan Probala, a managing broker at Windermere Real Estate/East in Issaquah, has been elected as the 2013 president of the Seattle King County Realtors.
Probala, a real estate professional since 1990 and resident of Issaquah, serves as vice chairwoman of the Issaquah Planning Policy Commission, chairwoman of the Issaquah Arts Commission and survivor chairwoman for Issaquah Relay for Life. In addition, she is a past president of the Issaquah Chamber of Commerce and Kiwanis Club of Issaquah.
Also named to the leadership team was Mike Winkler, principal managing broker at Coldwell Banker Bain Issaquah, as this year’s East Region director.
Blaze damages Klahanie home; firefighters rescue cat
January 24, 2013
NEW — 10:20 a.m. Jan. 24, 2013
Firefighters extinguished a blaze at a Klahanie home late Wednesday and rescued a cat from the fire.
Eastside Fire & Rescue responded to a reported explosion and fire inside a garage in the 24200 block of Southeast 43rd Place at 9:49 p.m.
Crews could see flames and smoke pouring from the garage upon arriving at the scene moments later. Firefighters protected nearby fire-prone areas and doused the blaze.
Officials said the home was occupied as the fire started, and the homeowner suffered a minor injury as he or she attempted to extinguish the blaze before firefighters arrived.
Funding fire service per call could cost Issaquah
January 15, 2013
Issaquah could contribute more to Eastside Fire & Rescue if the regional agency changes to a funding model based on the amount of calls each member produces.
Meanwhile, Sammamish could trim fire service costs by $156,000 and $314,000 per year if EFR partners — Issaquah, North Bend, Sammamish, and fire districts 10 and 38 — agree on changing the funding model.
For Issaquah and North Bend, the change could substantially increase the amount the partners pay to EFR in the name of maintaining the agency’s current incarnation beyond 2014.
A committee of elected officials and staff members from each partner met last month to discuss the implications of using call load as a factor in determining how much to charge.
Issaquah health fair offers wellness screenings
January 15, 2013
The annual Issaquah/Sammamish Health & Safety Fair returns to Pickering Barn from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Feb. 9 with plenty of free health screenings to make it fun and worthwhile for area families.
The fair will feature 50 or more health care professionals. Free health screening will include blood pressure, glucose, eye pressure, injury screening, posture and spinal analysis, oral cancer, sleep apnea and orthotic evaluations. There will be free gifts and information to take home.
The King County Police Union will host its MY ID Club, offering parents free fingerprints of their children, an important tool should children be abducted. The Issaquah Citizen Corps Council, the city of Issaquah and Eastside Fire & Rescue will offer safety and emergency preparedness information.
Landowners receive fire benefit charge notices
January 15, 2013
Landowners in Fire District 10 — Klahanie, May Valley, Mirrormont and Preston in the Issaquah area — recently received fire benefit charge notices.
The notice includes a letter of explanation and per-parcel benefit charge information. The notice is not a bill, and the recipient is not required to act, unless he or she believes some information is erroneous.
Issaquah/Sammamish Health & Safety Fair offers free screenings
January 14, 2013
NEW — 10 a.m. Jan. 14, 2013
The annual Issaquah/Sammamish Health & Safety Fair returns to Pickering Barn from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Feb. 9 with plenty of free health screenings to make it fun and worthwhile for area families.
The fair will feature 50 or more health care professionals. Free health screening will include blood pressure, glucose, eye pressure, injury screening, posture and spinal analysis, oral cancer, sleep apnea and orthotic evaluations. There will be free gifts and information to take home.
The King County Police Union will host its MY ID Club, offering parents free fingerprints of their children, an important tool should children be abducted. The Issaquah Citizen Corps Council, the city of Issaquah and Eastside Fire & Rescue will offer safety and emergency preparedness information.
Fire destroys home, kills pets
January 8, 2013
Eastside Fire & Rescue firefighters survey the scene to check for any running utilities or hotspots Jan. 7, the day after a home at 24415 S.E. 156th St. was destroyed in a fire. By Greg Farrar
Fire destroyed a home in unincorporated King County south of Issaquah on Jan. 6, and the blaze claimed the homeowner’s pets.
Eastside Fire & Rescue and Maple Valley Fire & Life Safety crews responded to a structure fire in the 24000 block of Southeast 156th Street, between Issaquah-Hobart Road Southeast and Cedar Grove Road Southeast, and about six miles south of downtown Issaquah.
The initial 911 call reached dispatchers at 1:03 p.m. and crews arrived at the scene about 10 minutes later.
Eastside Fire & Rescue closed station, cut staff in Issaquah
January 8, 2013
Eastside Fire & Rescue closed a fire station in Issaquah on Dec. 19 and reduced staff at another Issaquah fire station Dec. 14 as the agency’s overtime budget ran low.
The agency closed a Sammamish fire station Dec. 16 for the same reason.
Officials closed Station 72, 1575 N.W. Maple St., from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 19 and reduced the staff at Station 71, 190 E. Sunset Way, to two firefighters from the typical three, for six hours Dec. 14. The agency also shut down Station 81, 2030 212th Ave. S.E., from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 16.
The closures and staffing reductions have become something of a holiday tradition at EFR. In recent years, the agency’s overtime budget has become a lightning rod and a target for partners seeking to tighten the belt on personnel costs.
“We’re trying to make the administration and union aware that this is not a fund they can keep coming to,” EFR board member and Sammamish Mayor Tom Odell said.
Eastside Fire & Rescue extends deadline for volunteer firefighters
January 8, 2013
Eastside Fire & Rescue needs volunteer firefighters to serve communities in rural King County, including Lake Joy, Maple Hills, Preston, Tiger Mountain and Wilderness Rim.
The agency needs men and women to assist in delivering emergency firefighting and medical services. Officials extended the application deadline to 5 p.m. Jan. 23.
The minimum age to apply to serve as a volunteer firefighter is 18. Applicants must have good driving records and must live within five miles of the closest response station.
