Residents in Wolf Creek have been without a direct fire agency to protect them since October 2021. The president of the board of directors for the Wolf Creek Rural Fire Protection, Dave Clark said the issue is directly related to a lack of trained volunteer firefighters and the fire station's current conditions.

“We have people in training, but it takes a long time to get people trained, we currently have six volunteers, we have two interim chiefs,” Clark said.

Clark explained after there was a fuel spill in December, a hazmat team found underneath the building was contaminated. He said the board was notified that the building was uninhabitable and could no longer be used by the first responders.

“We are working on the building, we are working on training, recertifying vehicles, equipment so there are things we are doing in the meantime,” Clark said. “We are looking at liquidating some equipment that we don’t need anymore that is dealing with the state and the federal government to have them take back some equipment we don’t need, we are trying to streamline without breaking the bank."

Clark said the building’s conditions put a pause on training for the six new volunteer firefighters, who cannot serve the community until they are fully certified. Meanwhile, residents in the area are being protected by Rural Metro Fire and the Glendale Fire Department through a mutual aid agreement.

But it’s not the first time the agency has dealt with the issue. Clark said he has been on the board for three years and the president of the board for one. He said the need for trained volunteer firefighters has always been a constant challenge.

He said the agency received a $1.7 million grant to help with retrofitting the building for earthquakes.

Clark said the fire district will also need to come up with some of the money to reopen the closed fire station.

He said once the construction is complete, the six volunteer firefighters will get ready to help the people in Wolf Creek.

Clark said the agency is always taking trained volunteer firefighters who want to serve the community and anyone interested can email the board directly at wolfcreekfd@gmail.com or call 541-866-2584.