Sonoma Valley firefighters to begin answering Glen Ellen calls

Sonoma Valley firefighters this summer will take over fire and emergency calls in rural Glen Ellen under a contract approved by Glen Ellen fire district officials.

The contract is due to start July 1 and will put two firefighters - a captain and one with paramedic training - around the clock at the Glen Ellen station on Arnold Drive, an upgrade in numbers and medical abilities.

In the last few years Glen Ellen Fire Protection District has struggled to respond to calls with a skeleton crew, no night coverage and dwindling volunteer ranks. The agency has relied more and more on neighboring fire agencies to help.

Former Glen Ellen volunteer Fire Chief Matt Atkinson said the change is necessary to improve services to the rural community.

“It’ll help response times. It’s all the way around a great deal,” said Atkinson, a Glen Ellen volunteer since 1983 and Glen Ellen’s last volunteer fire chief.

In an earlier change enacted this year in advance of the contract, the two agencies agreed to share a fire chief. Atkinson dropped a rank to Glen Ellen volunteer division chief and Steve Akre, Sonoma Valley’s new fire chief, took on the Glen Ellen’s chief duties. Since February, Sonoma Valley firefighters have responded to every Glen Ellen call from their Agua Caliente station on Highway 12 to beef up response.

“First and foremost for the Glen Ellen community is they’re going to get a better level of service than they currently have,” Akre said. “We’ll provide Glen Ellen with a two-person engine company, 24-7, 365 days” in Glen Ellen. Sonoma Valley also will provide training, fire prevention and administration duties.

Glen Ellen’s fire district collects property tax monies to support fire services and has a budget of just under $1 million. Contracting services with Sonoma Valley will cost Glen Ellen $722,000 the first year and increase to $988,000 in the fifth year.

While Glen Ellen’s one remaining paid firefighter will become a Sonoma Valley firefighter, the Glen Ellen district will remain and be in charge of its firehouse and equipment, keep its board of directors and hold volunteer fundraising events throughout the year, Atkinson said.

A drop in firefighting volunteers has been a problem in the county as well as nationwide. Glen Ellen has had a roster of as large as 40 volunteers. But in 2015 there were 24 volunteers, and 15 in 2016. This year, 11 volunteers have shown up for at least one call, with six people actively responding, Atkinson said.

“They’ve been such a dedicated group of people in that department, trying their very best to make things work,” Akre said. Sonoma Valley fire has 39 full-time employees and about 40 volunteers.

The dwindling volunteer problem, as well as the high cost of fire services, have helped push Sonoma County fire chiefs and government officials toward considering agency consolidations, contracting services and other ways to save money and pool resources.