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Woodland Fire Department reports small call‑volume rise, 79% containment to room of origin
Summary
Fire Chief Eric Zane told council the department saw a 2.8% rise in calls in the first half of 2025, average priority response time of 4 minutes 46 seconds, and successes in fire investigations and mutual‑aid; staff will begin negotiations on Elkhorn Fire Protection District annexation.
Fire Chief Eric Zane delivered the Woodland Fire Department’s semiannual status report on Aug. 19, reporting a modest increase in calls for service, steady containment outcomes and ongoing regional consolidation talks. Zane said the department handled roughly 4,500 calls for service in the first six months of 2025, a 2.8% increase from the prior reporting period, with an average response time to priority (code‑3) incidents of 4 minutes, 46 seconds — an increase of four seconds compared with the prior period. The department reported giving mutual aid 55 times and receiving mutual aid 25 times during the period. On structure fires, Zane said crews contained fires to the room of origin 79% of the time. The report showed a pre‑incident property value of about $13.5 million and a reported loss of about $1.5 million, figures Zane used to illustrate that firefighters protected the majority of property value during incidents. Zane briefed council on administrative and operational items: the department onboarded a management analyst and one firefighter (who completed the fire academy and is now on shift) and is preparing lateral and recruit firefighter recruitment to address current and anticipated vacancies. On regional consolidation, Zane said the city is working with Yolo County and Yolo LAFCo on the proposed annexation of the Elkhorn Fire Protection District. "That is the route that we're going down," Zane said when asked whether Elkhorn would be dissolved into adjoining districts; he said parts of the Elkhorn district would be added to the Spring Lake Fire Protection District and other parts to West Sacramento’s district. Zane said he expects city staff to begin negotiations with Yolo County in the coming months and hopes to have more solidified information by the end of the calendar year. The department reported several programmatic outcomes: in‑house contacts (calls where responders identified individuals as unhoused) made up roughly 14% of call volume, the department canceled responses to non‑emergent medical facility dispatches 268 times to keep resources available for higher‑acuity calls, and the risk‑reduction division aided investigations that resulted in three arrests during the reporting period. Zane emphasized expanding performance metrics in the report, adding data such as in‑house contacts to better reflect service demands beyond response time. He also noted that plan reviewers are examining residential energy storage installations (e.g., Powerwall systems) and other new technologies to protect resident and firefighter safety during incidents. Council members thanked the chief for the report and suggested outreach materials for residents (for example, where to install home energy storage safely). No formal council action was taken; council asked for continued reporting and the city manager and fire chief said they will return with updates on the Elkhorn process as negotiations progress.
