UCSO looks back at response to Cold Springs Fire
By Terry Murry on Wednesday, July 9th, 2025 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
UMATILLA COUNTY – The Cold Springs Fire in the Hermiston area last week had firefighters battling heat and winds, deputies knocking on doors to evacuate residents, 911 calls flooding the Umatilla County Dispatch Center, and Umatilla County Emergency Manager Sage DeLong and his staff trying to coordinate everything so the public was informed.
For the first time in a long time, the dispatch center was fully staffed, with some of the newer hires still in training. Capt. Karen Primmer says the fire saw dispatchers coordinating with first responders as well as handling emergencies from other areas, describing the dispatchers as a well-oiled machine.
“Everybody started communicating really well across the room,” she said. “People who were doing Hermiston would be calling for Life Flight, or they would be calling for additional resources to include closing the roads.”
Meanwhile, the staff of the Emergency Management Center convened. Capt. Sterrin Ward says when the emergency begins they work hard to get a handle on things, but have to be careful not to slow down dispatch or first responders as they seek information.
“We hate to use the word chaos, but it is,” Ward said. “It’s a controlled chaos because it’s happening and unfolding so quickly. We’re going to try to get ahead of that and see if we can get information out to the public.”
Primmer and Ward detailed the work they did on that fire on the Tuesday July 8 KUMA Coffee Hour. Listen to what they face in a day’s work at https://omny.fm/shows/coffee-hour-podcast.
