Levy could provide overtaxed Kalispell Fire Department with more personnel, new station

When the calls began coming in Feb. 1 about a possible structure fire off of Three Mile Drive, the Kalispell Fire Department was across town fielding a medical call.

It was the agency’s sixth incident of the day, and the department summoned mutual aid from Smith Valley and Evergreen to cover the blaze. The response time was seven minutes — three minutes longer than the national average — although Assistant Fire Chief Jessica Kinzer said the engine dispatched quickly and traffic was minimal. 

That the building was an unoccupied backyard workshop was a lucky break, Kinzer said. By the time crews arrived the flames were too high for firefighters to enter and save anyone who might have been inside.