Vital partnerships: We are grateful for our many community partners in our response to extreme weather during the past week. Partner contributions were particularly important in our work to run a temporary daytime warming center, to help make sure there were options for those who needed a warm place to go. Our many thanks to: Bellingham Public Schools, Guild of Pacific Northwest Employees Local 1937, Lighthouse Mission Ministries, Opportunity Council Homeless Outreach Team, Northwest Youth Services, Pizza Time, Sanitary Services Corporation, Road2Home, RSU Security, Whatcom County Health and Community Services, Whatcom Transportation Authority, Zeek’s Pizza, and dozens of individuals. We couldn’t have done it without your support!
Kudos to our City team: Responding to the extreme weather of the past week has required teamwork, coordination, long hours and hard work. A big thank you to the City team: snowplow operators working day and night clearing streets, maintenance workers responding to frozen pipes and clearing pathways, firefighters responding to damaged fire sprinklers and electrical hazards, police officers responding to vehicle collisions and pushing stuck cars, City leaders staffing the warming center, and many other City employees out in the weather and behind the scenes whose jobs require they report for work no matter the conditions. They all help keep our City safe and moving!
Be prepared as weather shifts: Forecasts are calling for rain as the temperatures rise and City crews will shift from snow to stormwater needs. We expect to see some localized flooding around town. Please keep these tips in mind: help clear storm drains to avoid pooling water, do not drive through standing water on roadways, obey street closure signs, stay away from flooded creeks and avoid contact with storm and flood water, it is yucky. Also, please watch out for fallen branches, especially on trails and sidewalks. Do not approach downed power lines! Bellingham residents should call (360) 778-7700 or use the SeeClickFix app to report downed trees on streets, sidewalks or other public property or other hazardous conditions.
Fire/EMS dashboard: The Bellingham Fire Department responds to fire and emergency medical services calls within Bellingham city limits, Marietta, Lummi Reservation and neighboring fire districts. Bellingham Fire responded to 22,853 calls for service in 2023. The majority (18,799) were emergency medical services calls, responding to medical emergencies of all kinds. The dashboard offers stats about all aspects of these responses: types of fire and medical incidents, calls by time of day, response locations shown on a map, and much more. Dig deeper into this data on the Fire Department Data Dashboard.
Internet access survey now open: Is your internet reliable and affordable? The City of Bellingham is currently conducting a survey to assess our community’s needs. The survey is open to all Bellingham residents regardless of current internet service or housing status. Are there particular barriers you face in getting adequate, reliable internet service? High costs? Low availability? We want to know! The survey – in English and Spanish – is available online and in hard copy format at the Bellingham Public Library Central location (210 Central Ave). For more information and to take the survey, please visit our Engage Bellingham page.
