SANDPOINT — Misinformation and criticism surrounding local fire services were the subject of Tuesday’s “community chat” as Bonner County Commissioner Asia Williams hosted Selkirk Fire Rescue & EMS and Northside Fire Chief Jeff Armstrong at the event. 

Also in attendance were Northside Fire Commissioner Dave Bowman and Westside Fire Commissioner Merle Glass. 

Kicking off the 90-minute meeting, Armstrong gave an update on Northside, Westside and Sagle fire districts, including an explanation of Sagle’s Careywood station closure.   

The closure, he said, was ultimately based on finances and safety. The decision stemmed from a budget forecast in which Armstrong believed that staffing two people at the Careywood and Sagle stations would soon be “impossible” due to overtime and injury costs.  

In his forecast, Armstrong said the most sustainable model would include three staff at the Sagle station and one at Careywood. However, he noted that having one staff at Careywood proved too dangerous and “nearly dysfunctional.”

“It was becoming impractical and impossible, without dipping into reserves, for the Sagle Fire District to continue to staff the Careywood station with two people a day,” Armstrong said. “We dropped Careywood to one person, and we had multiple significant incidents that occurred where the Careywood firefighter was on scene first and put himself in a situation that I was not comfortable with.”  

While there are no plans to reopen the station full-time due to limited staffing and funding, Armstrong said there is potential to bring the station back seasonally, with seasonal wildland firefighters residing there.  

Though not the primary focus of the meeting, public perception and misinformation on social media — particularly Facebook — became a recurring theme throughout the discussion. Armstrong, Williams and Bowman each referenced critical comments, “naysayers,” and the spread of inaccurate information. 

“Let’s address the elephant in the room, so that there’s no longer an elephant, and we’re just getting to the facts,” Williams said. “I want us to address the hard things, because I don’t like misrepresentations of things.” 

To address some of the claims circulating online, Williams cited Facebook comments about the district’s wildland deployment to California in January 2025, asking Armstrong to address the facts. In doing so, she asked Armstrong to explain the financial terms of the deployment and whether it hurt or helped local taxpayers.  

In response, Armstrong shared that it cost the department $50,000 to send an engine to California, for which California paid the department $200,000. He further said that over time, deployment and personnel costs were covered.  

“Resource orders will come into the national system, and they’ll say, ‘I want this type of engine, I want this type of resource.’ And on the orders is a financial code that tells you how you’re going to get paid and who’s paying you,” Armstrong said. “That’s a decision I make once I see the resource order. The moment we leave here, the engine is paid for, and all the personnel time is paid for. And, if we’re sending full-time personnel who require backfill, the backfill is paid for.”  

Armstrong also said the district is obligated to meet minimum staffing levels when sending people out, so as not to limit coverage in Bonner County.  

In other discussions, Armstrong said conversations will continue to be had as officials work to address community concerns while also determining the best path forward in stabilizing emergency response coverage.