Friends of the Fire District, West Point/Wilseyville
P.O. Box 23, West Point, CA 95255
tel: 209-293-7445
contact name: Peggy Chambers
email: peggyc@volcano.net

Attend the Trial on August 14!
County of Calaveras Superior Court
Government Center, San Andreas

Bill Doherty and Concerned Citizens for Responsible Government
vs.
West Point Fire Protection District

Call the Calaveras Superior Court, 754-6338, on August 13 to confirm time and department number.

Updated information as of August 6, 2008:

The August 14 th court date is rapidly approaching. We feel it timely to get some updated information out to the Friends of West Point Fire.

• Our two professional paid staff are currently working a 24 hour 5 days a week schedule. Of the two, one is working at reduced pay and benefits due to lack of funding caused by the lawsuit.
• Our fire chief's salary has been deferred due to lack of funding. The weekends are limited to volunteers.
• The intern program that could have brought as many as 6 fire academy students to our department has been shelved because of lack of funding due to the lawsuit.

Following are West Point Fire District call statistics from January 2008 through June 2008:

• Total Calls – 170
• Structure Fires – 6
• Wildland Fires - 15
• Total Fires – 21
• Medical Aids – 104
• Vehicle Accidents – 14
• Public Assists – 14
• False Alarms – 1
• Emergency Standby – 11
• Smoke Checks – 5

Total Calls – 170
Personnel Per Incident – 3.25
Total Incident Hours Worked – 225.5
Staff Hours – 734.25
Total Training Hours – 1659.75

Insurance Concerns:

There are several individuals who have had their Allstate homeowner's insurance cancelled due to the fact that we no longer have a 24/7 fire department.

Kudos to West Point Fire:

Several times this fire season Cal Fire has had to pull their resources from the area to respond to more critical locations. Our fire department has met the state mandated requirements, and at the state's request taken the responsibility of assuming the role as a Cal Fire Strike Team. The state pays the firefighters for their time, and the department is compensated by the state for the rental of vehicles, equipment, etc. This extra income has been a plus for the operating budget.

Law Suit:

The day before the August 14 th court date, the attorneys will present their briefs to the Judge. If all goes well, the trial will begin as scheduled. The amended lawsuit is now down to six points, down from well over a hundred in the original lawsuit. To date our defense attorney fees are rapidly approaching $ 60,000.00. And we're not done yet.

Please Show Your Support

With support of concerned people like you, Friends of the Fire District West Point/Wilseyville has raised nearly $35,000. These funds have been used to support our fire department.

Donations are greatly needed and appreciated to support our fire department during their time of need.

We all stand to lose a great deal without our valuable fire district services. Please send the below Friends of the Fire District West Point/Wilseyville link to your friends and neighbors:
www.mycalaveras.com/FFD

Help Save
Our Fire Department!

The citizens of West Point and Wilseyville take for granted that the fire department and fire personnel will always be available in an emergency. However, due to a law suit filed against the 2007 benefit assessment, our fire department is on the brink of financial disaster.

In our remote part of the county, fire department first responders can mean the difference between property protection and life or death in medical emergencies. Without them, we are on our own.

Donations Needed to Keep the Doors Open!

Please make checks payable to BMCRC and include "Friends of Fire District " in the memo field.

Mail checks to Friends of the Fire District, P.O. Box 23, West Point, CA 95255