Fire Associates Called To Aide San Jose Food Response

 
Date: Feb. 21, 2017
Dispatch at 10:37am
Location: San Jose's Nordale neighborhood - Phelan & Senter Roads
Type: Multiple Flood Rescues
FASCV Responders: FSU-2, Gilbert, Whiteside
   
Details: San Jose Fire called Fire Associates looking for assistance with meals for an ongoing rescue operation in the Nordale neighborhood, near Kelley Park. The Coyote Creek had flooded and was flooding multiple homes and apartments. San Jose responded with multiple rescue boats and were working to evacuate residents.
   
The nature of the flood meant the floodwaters were contaminated wth raw sewage, fuel and oil from flooded vehicles, and assorted chemicals picked up in various homes and garages. This meant as well as evacuating the residents it was important to decontaminate the residents who had been exposed to the flood water.
   
San Jose worked to evacuate over 200 residents by boat. Meanwhile Fire Associates were setting up to provide rehab to the first responders working the scene. Setting up a rehab facility across the street from the incident in the lobby of the Fire HQ building proved advantageous, and our helpers throughout the day even included San Jose’s Fire Chief Jacobson.
 
Don Gilbert and John Whiteside responded to the scene with Fire Support Unit 2, stopping en route to collect the first 40 meals, along with a supply of donuts and coffee. Setting up Rehab in a downstairs conference room gave our first responders a higher than normal comfort level, and good access to bathroom facilities. Of course having been wading through chest deep water across the road they all had to decontaminate before entering Rehab.
   
As the event dragged into the afternoon a second food run was made to bring in another 40 meals for hungry first responders. Once the primary search had been completed of all the residences in the impacted neighborhood units were released to additional flood areas around San Jose. With FSU-2 being dispatched to an ongoing operation on Oakland Road at around 16:15.
 
Report submitted by Bruce Dembecki