Valley Fire Stations Sponsor Open House

Interested residents will have a chance today to tour firehouses, meet firefighters and check out the “Jaws of Life” and other apparatus at city fire stations across the Valley as part of “Fire Service Recognition Day.”

The day is an opportunity for the public to put a human face on firefighters and a time to remember firefighters who have died in the line of duty, said Capt. Norm Greengard of Fire Station No. 39 in Van Nuys.

“A lot of times, the public doesn’t see us every day except in emergency situations,” he said. Fire Service Recognition Day is a friendlier setting for meeting firefighters.

All fire stations citywide will host open houses between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Included in Valley activities are the following:

* A welcome from Fire Chief Bill Bamattre and actor Edward James Olmos at Fire Station No. 88, 5101 N. Sepulveda Blvd., Sherman Oaks. Members of the search and rescue, the swift water rescue, the helicopter hoist rescue and the disaster preparedness teams will demonstrate their various disciplines.

* An outside demonstration of firefighting equipment at the San Fernando Valley training drill tower, Fire Station No. 89, 7063 Laurel Canyon Blvd., North Hollywood.

* A demonstration of traffic accident rescue techniques using the “Jaws of Life” at Fire Station No. 73, 7419 Reseda Blvd., Reseda.

* A demonstration of up-to-the-minute firefighting operations at Ritchie Valens Park near Fire Station No. 98, 13035 Van Nuys Blvd., Pacoima, and at Fire Station No. 74, 7777 Foothill Blvd., Sunland.