Rediscovering home: Riverbend underpass

Sometimes it is just a matter of talking to the right person. 

The right person this time was Superior Fire Chief Scott Dodd. He put one issue to rest. But then raised another. My journalistic metal detector started beeping as I listened to a debate at a candidate forum about whether the underpass at Riverbend should be expanded. There was talk that not all of the Superior Fire District trucks could fit through the underpass. Apparently, the matter was discussed at length at a prior Mineral County Commissioner meeting.   

As I recall, my dad spent the summers of his youth working on Otto Hanson’s fields before homes sprouted from the soil at Riverbend. 

The recent fire at the Rice residence at Riverbend brought the issue to mind once again.  The fire burned four outbuildings and a travel trailer, and scorched the siding on a wall of the home, Dodd said.  Most importantly, he added, no one was hurt. 

So, I put the question to Dodd about his truck fitting through the underpass. 

“All of my trucks slip through there,” he answered. 

The department recently acquired a six-wheel tanker truck from Montana Department Natural Resources and Conservation. “It was so much bigger that when I first got it, I took it out there.” And it fit.  

Dodd raised a related concern that is not limited to Riverbend.  The fire district, as well as the county as a whole, is rife with places where a number of residences have only single-lane roads providing access. 

 If, say, a fire or an automobile crash cuts off access, and someone needs emergency help, first responders will not be able to get through. Dodd mentioned the underpass at Dairy Lane off of the Southside Road west of Superior. Recently, a vehicle rolled off I-90 and landed near the underpass. Dodd said if the vehicle had landed 75-80 feet closer, it would have blocked the underpass.   

Folks have built homes in practically every drainage around Superior, and many have only one way in or out. He cited Deep Creek, where 10-15 new homes have been built recently, as just one of many examples. 

The Fire Protection Plan for Mineral County is being redone. He said one purpose of the plan is to inform residents of the risks posed by living in such an area. He said the plan drafters “draw big red circles” around those areas. The Soil Conservation District is coordinating the revision, but a number of agencies are involved.  

Returning to Riverbend, Dodd said fire chiefs over the years have had conversations with the Montana Department of Transportation regarding the underpass as the lone access point to the community. But there is the issue of money. Dodd said he was confident that if he called MDOT officials, first responders could go through the interstate fence if needed to reach a person with a medical emergency. However, the Department has strict rules when it comes to taking down fences, and the logistics would pose challenges.   

One witness reported to me that many years ago, a crane was used to lift a manufactured home over the fence, when it could not fit through the underpass. That would not happen today.  

Dodd really has two jobs. He is the part-time chief of the Town of Superior’s fire department and is also the chief of the Superior Rural Fire District that serves the area around the town.  That includes Tarkio, which Dodd said now has a fully functioning fire station. 

The department’s numbers are “pretty strong,” and have been steady throughout his eight-year tenure with the department, with about 20 firefighters. Dodd has 26 years of experience, working in a combined department (both volunteer and paid members) in western Washington.  He believes the department is adequately staffed, but he would never turn down anyone who wanted to volunteer.  The department recently lost some experience and expertise with the retirement of Ken Quitt and Steve Temple. 

Firefighters receive retirement benefits through the Montana Public Employees Association, and the Volunteer Firefighters Association. They also have a small retirement benefit from the town. 

The Superior volunteer ambulance service is separate from the fire department, though Dodd, who is an EMT, also ran on the ambulance before becoming chief took up his time.  The department, as it is often the first on the scene, has started a staffed medical service.  It usually has six to 10 EMTs. 

Being a firefighter, and especially an EMT, requires a solid commitment, but Dodd says the opportunity to help those in need makes it all more than worthwhile.