The Fire District
General Info
Cottonwood Fire Department originated in the early 1930's when the community of Cottonwood was having more and more structure fires and few people to help fight them. The Ladies Garden Club decided to help raise money with the few Volunteer firemen at that time. These volunteers held dances on the old Cottonwood Creek Bridge to raise money. With the raised funds they managed to purchase their first engine. The engine was a 1930 Dodge Brother's fire engine. Since they had no fire department it was stored at one of the volunteers homes. In 1936 the Volunteer Fire Department moved into their new home, a building that was used as a car dealership. To this day the department is still there.
The department services an area of rural/urban interface 36 square miles. The terrain is tree covered canyons to flat
Cottonwood Fire Department originated in the early 1930's when the community of Cottonwood was having more and more structure fires and few people to help fight them. The Ladies Garden Club decided to help raise money with the few Volunteer firemen at that time. These volunteers held dances on the old Cottonwood Creek Bridge to raise money. With the raised funds they managed to purchase their first engine. The engine was a 1930 Dodge Brother's fire engine. Since they had no fire department it was stored at one of the volunteers homes. In 1936 the Volunteer Fire Department moved into their new home, a building that was used as a car dealership. To this day the department is still there.
The department services an area of rural/urban interface of 36 square miles. The terrain is tree covered canyons to flat
Maps & History
COTTONWOOD FIRE DISTRICT MAP & HISTORY
Our first Fire Station was built in 1913. (103 years old). It's has served it duty for the last 80 years, as the Cottonwood Fire Dept. It was donated to the Cottonwood community in 1936 . In 2018/2019 construction on our new home was finished in April of 2019. This new station will make it possible for newer apparatus to be purchased. Newer fire engines are wider and taller than ones in the past. The new station also uses an exhaust system so that harmful chemicals do not stay in the bay and get onto the firefighters. The new station also houses a turn out extractor that the firefighters can use to clean all the harmful chemicals from their gear.
We work on a shoestring budget of around $450,000; our fire fighters are the lowest paid in Shasta County for doing the same job and more as other depts. Our station is covered 24/7. We have 4 full time employees, 3 seasonal, 2 part time fire fighters for sick and vacations and 15 volunteers. Our district is 36 square miles in size. The new fire station will house all of our engines. The size of the new station is around 10,000 square feet. We are trying to build what we need in for the future, so it will last another 80 years or longer, which none of us will be around to see.
If we come in under the 4,000,000 dollars the money that we saved may go back to the federal government and we will only have to pay on what we borrowed. Also we have to use prevailing wages to build this station, which means more costs at around 2-3 times the labor cost. This is not unique for just us, it is for all government/public agencies.
District Boundaries
The District goes from I-5
North to the church on cottonwood hill.
South to Tehama Co line.
East to Moonbeam Rd
West to Battle Creek Bridge on Gover Rd.
Mission Statement
Mission Statement
Mission, Vision and Values
The Cottonwood Fire Protection District's mission is to be the leading emergency service organization by meeting the needs of our community in fire prevention, fire suppression and rescue using an all hazards approach.
The Vision of Cottonwood Fire Protection district is to utilize and improve the dedication and skills of our services and operations. We will assist similar organizations upon their request with available resources.
The Cottonwood Fire Protection District has these Values:
Provide a safe, healthful and environmentally friendly emergency response system
Support our Volunteers and paid staff with adequate incentives and awards to achieve superior performance
Attempt to meet or exceed local, state and federal standards for emergency agencies
Use a business model that addresses adequate service levels within available resources
Will actively recruit the best qualified persons without regard to race, sex, color, or creed