OHFD wields more firefighting power

Published 1:30 am Friday, April 10, 2026

New recruits, a new station and a shiny new ladder truck — the Oak Harbor Fire Department is ramping up its service to the community.

“We try to be very responsible with taxpayers’ dollars,” Fire Chief Travis Anderson said. “So the more value we can provide, the better.”

Over on Southwest Swantown Avenue, the department’s new, approximately 7,300-square-foot station nears completion following about a year of construction.

Similar to how the Oak Harbor School District is considering building a new school on property at Fort Nugent Park, Station 82 newly serves a region of the city exhibiting growth. What was previously the department’s only station — Station 81 — sits near North Whidbey Middle School on the eastern side of the city.

A bond measure approved in 2022 funded the two-story, two-bay facility in its entirety, including its office space, gym, bedrooms, living room and large kitchen.

“There’s three platoons that’ll work out here. They’re on for 48 hours, so each platoon has their own fridge,” Anderson said. “It’s kind of like three different families living here.”

Fire stations are typically single-story buildings these days, Anderson explained, because fire poles and slides can cause injuries and, generally speaking, responding to calls can be done faster without having to descend a level. But the original, single-story and three-bay concept exceeded the size of the property.

While Anderson thinks a larger piece of land could have been found, he emphasized that building on the Swantown property, specifically, improves the department’s response times. Ideally, the department reaches emergencies within five minutes of dispatch and between the two stations, “we’re really within about 1.8 to 2 miles from any resident that calls 911,” he said.

Safety ultimately played a role in the station’s design. Firefighters’ risk of cancer is high, at least in part because of the carcinogenic diesel exhaust they are often exposed to while living and working within the vicinity of the apparatus bay.

That changes at the new station. An exhaust extraction system in the apparatus bay funnels fumes outside, and the bay itself is sealed off from the living quarters. A $120,000 grant paid for machinery in a decontamination room for cleaning gear, which is now stored in its own locker room.

Construction alone ultimately cost about $4.8 million, which Anderson described as under-budget.

The station is built to grow as the city does, making it a long-term investment in the community as much as it is an investment in firefighters’ well-being. Station 82 sleeps a maximum of six people, and while Anderson said there are no plans to create another unit in the “immediate future,” the station is built to accommodate staffing increases.

Fleet upgrades occurred as well.

Purchasing a new ladder truck and a new engine for the department cost about $1.6 million, which was funded by the aforementioned bond and a levy passed the same year.

The acquisition of new apparatuses is long overdue. Anderson acknowledged that while the department’s previous, 33-year-old ladder truck served its purpose, it also experienced “major failings,” like leaks. Investing more money into fixing the aging truck made little sense.

Oak Harbor Fire Department’s new ladder truck, equipped with a 75-foot ladder, is the only one of its kind operated by civilians on the island.

Evaluations of fire departments determine insurance ratings in surrounding communities, and owning a ladder truck is one way to lower those rates. Mutual aid partners in North, Central and South Whidbey can lower their insurance ratings, too, by virtue of working with a department in possession of a ladder truck, Anderson explained.

While the ladder truck arrived at the station recently, it will be another three weeks before the engine arrives, which is currently being outfitted in Tacoma.

Ensuring the department is staffed well enough to make proper use of these improvements is important, too.

Anderson said the department is implementing a paramedic unit which can administer a higher level of care to victims while responding to calls. And, restructuring the organizational chart as the department did recently allows it to add three full-time staff members since eliminating the volunteer and part-time firefighter program.

Some position titles changed in that restructuring as well, in order to establish hierarchical continuity within the fire service at large and to reflect some individuals’ increased administrative responsibilities.

A 13-week training academy currently jointly hosted by the Oak Harbor Fire Department and South Whidbey Fire/EMS will benefit both departments, too. Of the eight recruits enrolled, five will work in Oak Harbor and three on the South End.

The program is an economical and overall more efficient alternative to the Washington State Fire Training Academy in North Bend, which Anderson said can be costly to attend. Keeping training local allows recruits to familiarize themselves with the unique way each department conducts business anyways, he added.

Nick Walsh, South Whidbey’s fire chief, added that “holding a joint training academy builds operational consistency between agencies on the island, builds inter-agency camaraderie and takes advantage of economies of scale by joining forces.”

It is the first time the departments have held joint career firefighter academies, Walsh said; although it has been a while, they have held joint volunteer academies in the past.

Community members can check out the new station and the ladder truck at two upcoming events.

A push-in ceremony for the ladder truck is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. on April 11 at Station 81. A pancake breakfast to celebrate Station 82’s opening is set for June 6. Due to insufficient parking at the new station, that celebration will be held at Station 81. Shuttles to and from the new station will be provided, so guests can tour the new facility.