It’s a highlight of the City of Seattle Neighbor Appreciation Day every year – open house at local fire stations. We stopped by three West Seattle stations that welcomed visitors on Saturday. At Station 37 in Sunrise Heights, we found not only Engine 37 and crew, but also members of the West Seattle See Dogs puppy-raising club, there to help their four-legged charges get acclimated to firefighters, as WSSD’s Ruth Oldham explained. That’s Corbitt the puppy with firefighter Joe Clegg, who also entranced the young humans by demonstrating equipment including a camera:
We usually see firefighters in their full gear, as they work to put out fires, treat injured/sick people, and more, so this is also a chance to meet them face to face – like Ladder 13 driver Matt Reilly:
He was on duty at Station 11 in Highland Park during the open house. Ladder 13’s been there almost two years, but isn’t expected to be there much longer, because (as per the original announcement) it was added to cover a potential response gap caused by the lack of a westbound onramp to the Spokane Street Viaduct – and the new onramp will open this summer. Once the ladder truck has departed, we’re told, Station 11 – permanent home to Engine 11 – will get some upgrades, including earthquake-safety work (explained here).
Our final stop was Station 32 in The Junction, which is on deck for a complete rebuild in the not-too-distant future (explained here):
Station 32 is home to Ladder 11, Engine 32, and Medic 32 – plus this very shiny pole:
We had just missed the big rush of visitors, the crew told us, so we took the opportunity to peer at some of the equipment:
32, 37, and 11 are three of West Seattle’s five fire stations, along with Station 29 in North Admiral and Station 36 right by the north end of Delridge Way SW (where it meets the West Seattle Bridge).
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