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The Hayfork Volunteer Fire Department was formed in 1948 by a group of concerned citizens. Longtime residents Ray Jesse and Walter Glass, Dick Jesse, Lee Murdock and Jess Laffranchini were instrumental in the creation of the department. A newcomer to town, Charles Wyckoff Sr. soon became involved, served in various functions including chief and was the longest serving fire chief.
The first engine was a 1928 Dodge Graham stored in a garage next to the Larry Glass residence. The first two personnel to arrive for a call had to pull start the engine.
Plans for a fire station were developed and the Laffranchini family donated a piece of land where the old station now sits on Highway 3 next to Wiley’s Market. Using donated material and local labor the building began. With the building being completed in 1951 the Hayfork Fire Protection District also received its charter from the California Secretary of State.
The original station stayed much the same until 1966 when a single story was added adjacent to the Hayfork Hotel. This addition housed Engine 18 a retired Cal OES engine purchased by the district.
The original alarm system consisting of call boxes, clock and Gamewell board came from the city of Sacramento and was a familiar feature of town. For forty years every day at 8 am, 12 noon and 5 pm the large and very loud air horn gave forth two blasts. The horn also activated upon a call box being pulled and on the last Tuesday of every month to call the volunteers to the regular meeting at 7:00 pm. We still meet today on the last Tuesday but have moved the time to 6:30.
In 2015, Hayfork Fire moved to their new home at 195 Hyampom Rd. in the Public Safety Facility building. We now house state-of-the-art equipment including 2 Type 1 Engines and 2 water tenders. fire gear, tools and other equipment. And, we can’t forget the over 11,000 hours of training our volunteers have done from 1995 to the present.
TImes have changed, but our mission to protect our community has stayed the same over all the years.
The modern Hayfork Volunteer Firefighter is a highly trained firefighter. These volunteer firefighters meet or exceed the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) requirements and continuously work toward attaining California Firefighter 1 certification. This level of training is accomplished through completion of a Volunteer Firefighter Academy as well as ongoing training throughout their service as a volunteer firefighter with Hayfork fire.
The mission of the Hayfork Volunteer Fire Department is to serve our community and department by providing volunteer resources in support of the Department’s overall mission of protecting lives and property through proactive education, prevention and response.
Proactive: A proactive team, which promotes, anticipates, influences, and embraces change.
Responsible: Delivering service without recklessness, we put the consideration of others above and before ourselves.
Our Team: A team motivated to improve our working relationships with each other, career members of our department, department management staff, Trinity County officials, and other members of the Fire Service.
Trust: We covet the publics and each other’s trust and endeavor to maintain it through valor, excellence and selflessness.
Excellence: We are dedicated to meeting the needs of our department and community while we promote a positive image of Hayfork Volunteer Fire Department within our community.
Courage: Courageously encountering adversity, accepting responsibility of ones actions and providing respectful and obedient conduct due the public and our peers.
Training: We strive for constant improvement to better serve the community and each other.
We will PROTECT our community.
If you would like to join us in the commitment to protect Hayfork, volunteer today!