RL Colina, Deputy Chief of the Monroe County Fire Department, joined Good Morning Keys on KeysTalk 96.9/102.5FM this morning to talk about fire safety.
Wildfires can be dangerous this time of year – some of which can be started by people burning outside.
Colina said, “We definitely have some of those targeted areas in Monroe County that are susceptible to wild fires, but we’ve got a great partnership with the Department of Forestry. We ensure that any of those denser areas where we have populated houses that they’re doing these controlled burns for those areas.”
The controlled burns keep the underbrush and undergrowth well-regulated and residents are alerted when the burns happen.
Colina said, “For those times when we have those afternoon storms and lightning strikes, those are probably one of the biggest causes of these, that we can actually get in there and knock it out, control it, without it having any type of impact on these residential houses.”
With the influx of visitors in the Keys, EMS staff is busy.
Colina said, “We’ve got such beautiful surroundings and people want to look around, but we want to make sure that people stay focused on where they’re going, what’s in front of them and always maintain the speed limit. We do have a lower posted speed than I think most people outside of Monroe County are used to, so when they first get here, they travel a little bit excessively. We just want to tell everybody enjoy the surroundings, but keep a close eye out what’s in front of you. Just know that Fire Rescue of Monroe County, the men and women are so dedicated to ensuring everybody’s safety of the residents and the visitors. We’re the people you love to visit, but you never want to see us on scene.”
Fire and Rescue never knows what a call will bring.
Colina said, “We prepare for the worst. We go in there fighting, making sure that all our resource is needed, whether it be a fire alarm that turns into a working fire or a vehicle accident that may require additional resources. We’re prepared. The men and women at Fire and Rescue are well trained. We always want to be able to put it into use. Just for those certain occurrences, we are ready to go.”
Outreach in Monroe County schools is also important.
Colina said, “We spend most of the year in and out of the schools, holding public events on the weekends. Now as most schools are getting ready to wind down, we’ve got a lot of kids that will be out. We are preparing for Beat the Heat this summer. It’s a summer program where we work with some of the schools and the summer camps and just ensure we get the firefighters out there to relate with the school-aged children.”
Home fire safety is a big topic in that program.
Colina said, “During the summer we do have a larger population of children that might be home alone and we want to make sure that they understand what home safety is about. So we’re constantly reinforcing that with all the students going across the board.”
Fire and Rescue also works with the Fire Academy.
Colina said, “We are extremely fortunate in Monroe County that we have one of 46 state certified training facilities in the county. We run our annual Hot Shot program out of there, which for anyone local within the Florida Keys that’s interested in becoming a firefighter it is at no cost to you to go through the fire academy. It’s really showing some good numbers for us. We’re really proud of this program. That we have a state-funded facility here that is run by the county and we’re able to help those within our county kind of stay here and help provide a service back to the county as a certified firefighter. It starts up in August.”
The fire department is fully staffed at the moment, but retention is important.
Colina noted, “We have a high cost of living down here and we always have to make sure that we provide the adequate training and resources for our crews to come down here. That’s why retention for us, we definitely look forward to inspiring more local residents to join the fire service and give them the training that they need to participate in this county.”
Hurricane preparedness is always on the minds of Fire and Rescue.
Colina said, “If there’s one county that stands at the top of resiliency, it’s Monroe County.”
Preparedness starts inside the home. Residents should make sure to have nonperishable items, flashlights, extra batteries, medications and additional food for animals.
Colina said, “We always start early. I would say we’re always in preparation mode for the hurricanes. We’ve got an amazing Emergency Management Department.”
Even during an evacuation, Fire and Rescue stay in the county.
Colina said, “We do leave our people in place. A lot of our men and women, they’re dedicated and part of their job is to ensure that we’re here. If you don’t evacuate, there might reach a point where it makes it even more difficult for us to get to you or even be able to get to you if certain roadways are closed or they’re sectioned off. Just rest assured that the men and women of Monroe County Fire and Rescue will always be there in place and we’re ready to serve.”
For more information, click here: https://www.monroecounty-fl.gov/firerescue