The city’s hottest event

In Esther Short Park’s Propstra Square, near where children were cooling off Saturday in the park’s water feature, the firemen were getting hotter.

Two by two they strapped into 75 pounds worth of clothing and equipment and squared off in the firefighters challenge, a big draw for the second annual Fire in the Park.

The firefighters dragged a hose across the bricks, simulated chopping through a roof and lugged a 175-pound doll to safety.

Jonathan Lawrence of Vancouver Fire Department’s Station 3 repeated his win from last year, finishing this year in two minutes, 20 seconds.

He and Charlie Schmidt, also from Station 3, which serves the Heights, won a relay competition.

The secret to success in mid-90s heat?

“Going hard and trying not to puke,” said Lawrence, 26.

Fire in the Park started at 11 a.m. and ended after a free evening concert by 5 Guys Named Moe. There were a chili cook-off, a beer garden, kids’ activities and antique fire apparatus on display.

Mark Johnston, president of the Vancouver Firefighters Union, was pleased with the turnout.

Last year’s event raised money for the state firefighters union, but proceeds from Saturday’s event will benefit Share, which serves the homeless and hungry in Vancouver.

“All the money stays right here,” Johnston said.

Last year, organizers ran out of chili and lost money on the beer garden because there was no free concert to entice people to stay in the evening.

This year, there were 13 chili booths (a mix of restaurants and firefighters) and the event received more than $20,000 in corporate donations from sponsors including Beaches Restaurant and Bar, Keller Williams Realty and IQ Credit Union.

Johnston said it’s too early to know how much money will be raised for Share, but said the event received so much support he plans on doing it again next year.

“We’d like to get people to expect this,” he said. “We just really wanted to reach out to the community.”

While firefighters were volunteering Saturday to raise money for other people, they are facing cuts of their own. The city will close Fire Station 6 in Burton, and 18 firefighter positions are going to be lost as part of $10.5 million in cuts to the city’s 2011-12 budget.

Five of those positions are paid for by Clark County Fire District Five because of a service agreement, so that leaves 13 positions to be cut, Johnston said. He said a few of the youngest firefighters have moved to Bellevue for jobs, and he’s working to find lateral transfers for other firefighters.

Retirements may account for some of the cut positions, he said, so it’s unclear how many firefighters will lose their jobs.

“The closure of (the Burton) station is a bitter pill to swallow,” Johnston said.

Fire Captain Jay Getsfrid, who was announcing the firefighters challenge on Saturday, works at the Burton station. He won’t be laid off because of his seniority, so he’ll be transferred.

“We’ll get off work the morning of Jan. 1, and nobody will relieve us,” Getsfrid said.

But both said Saturday’s event wasn’t about dwelling on budget cuts. It was raising money for the largest nonprofit organization that serves the homeless, who frequently need help from paramedics.

“Their clients are our clients,” Johnston said of Share. “They do great work in the community … that’s the message of today.”

Stephanie Rice: 360-735-4508 or stephanie.rice@columbian.com.