The Spokane Valley Fire Department (SVFD) responded to a record number of calls in January 2024.
Valley Fire Chief Frank Soto revealed the department responded to more than 2,100 calls just last month alone. More than 1,700 of those calls were EMS related, followed by 170 building alarms and 95 car accidents. Chief Soto said last month's cold snap was partially to blame for the influx of calls. He also attributed the cold weather and icy conditions to an increase in car accidents.
"A lot of busted pipes, we had an increase of those calls by 132%," Soto said. "It's actually the second busiest call behind our EMS calls."