Firefighters from the East Contra Costa Fire Protection District were forced out of Station 94 in Knigthsen Saturday after a high level of Total coliform bacteria was discovered in the water.
As a temporary solution, the District has re-opened Station 54 in downtown Brentwood where the firefighters were housed Saturday and remain Sunday morning. The crew will continue using Station 94 equipment such as the fire engine and water tender rather than using the equipment in Station 54–possibly to give the impression that Station 94 in Knightsen is still operating.
The fire district has not yet provided an official statement, however, a union source said the District was trying to keep firefighters in the station and encouraging them to be careful when using the water and keep it out of their mouths.
We were told once the union became involved, the District backed off on the stance of remaining in Knightsen and firefighters were moved to Station 54 in Brentwood. The source of the bacteria is possibly coming from a well at the station.
According to the EPA, coliform is a bacteria whose presence indicates that water may be contaminated by human or animal wastes. Microbes in these wastes can cause short term effects, such as diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches, or other symptoms.
No timetable has been given on when or if a return to Knigthsen will occur. That will likely depend on District finances.
On September 1, the District closed Downtown Brentwood and moved to a four-station fire model because of available funding. The decision was made that in order to give the bets coverage to the District as a whole, the four stations that would remain open were Brentwood (Balfour Rd), Discovery Bay (Bixler Rd), Knightsen (A. St.), and Oakley (O’Hara). The District is also operating with 35-personnel and 10 open positions.
Note: Chief Henderson was emailed late Saturday evening and has not yet responded. We will issue an update once more information is made available.
4 comments
What an irresponsible leadership move not alerting anyone in the public about this move. The people on Bethel Island should be outraged because their closed engine is now in Oakley. If Oakley is busy, its Brentwood. SCARY!
I hope ECT got this wrong because I find this very disturbing that they would request firefighters stay in a station full of bacteria. I do support the firefighters, but the moves this District leadership keeps making makes it awfully hard to support the District. I am of the opinion the District does not have a revenue or spending problem, it has a public relations problem because the public should know about this immediately.
This appears to be a cover up if no one knows what station is open or closed. That lack of public awareness could mean life or death if someone showed up to a station seeking immediate help.
Lets just call a spade a spade. Brentwood wanted its fire station back and they found a way to get it back. Come on ECT, stop trying to make stuff up. There is no problem at Station 94 other than not enough calls to Bethel Island versus Brentwood. The district is not going to release anything because they probably think its operational. We in the public are not that stupid.
Another political game. Knightsen has its own water system. Hook up to it in an hour and a half. Problem solved. The games this district plays is so juvenile.Then there is that union.I sure hope they stop these games that put the public at risk to sell another tax not needed. It may come back to bite them in a horrible litigation suit.
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