SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. — Spokane County Fire District 3 is asking voters to approve a six-year emergency medical services property tax levy this November, saying they need more staff to keep up with the climb in calls.
Fire Chief Cody Rohrbach, said the district responded to about 1,400 calls annually ten years ago. Since then, that number has grown to about 3,500 calls a year as the population has increased. Fire District 3 covers the largest geographic area of any fire district in Spokane County, stretching from Spokane International Airport to the boundaries of Lincoln and Whitman counties. Rohrbach said it covers roughly 570 square miles, or the southwest one-third part of Spokane.
Only 2 out of the district’s 11 fire stations — in Medical Lake and Four Lakes — are currently fully staffed every day, meaning at least two firefighters are assigned at each of those stations. If voters approve the levy, the district plans to add at least two firefighters at stations in Cheney and Spangle, bringing the number of fully staffed stations in their district to four…