Central Washington Interagency Communications Center

MISSION STATEMENT
Central Washington Interagency Communication Center (CWICC) serves as the focal point to provide all-risk dispatching, logistical support, intelligence, resource status, and availability relative to anticipated/ongoing incident activity for all cooperating agencies within the CWICC jurisdictional boundary. CWICC facilitates the movement of resources between cooperating agencies, units, and concurrently ensures fire suppression capabilities by monitoring weather, fire danger, and prescribed burning activity within the area. CWICC also responds to requests for resources to neighboring units within the northwest region (region 6), in conjunction with the Northwest Coordination Center (NWCC), and nationally with the National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC).

A Brief Profile
Central Washington Interagency Communication Center began operations in the spring of 1992. The CWICC dispatch area encompasses 15 counties, covering 14.2-million acres of land, and protecting 6.5- million acres for the WA DNR Southeast and Northeast Regions (SES,NES), USFS Okanogan Wenatchee National Forest (OWF), USFWS Mid-Columbia Wildlife Refuge (MCR), and BLM Spokane District (SPD). CWICC serves as the communication focal point for initial and extended attack wildland fire incidents providing resources, intelligence, logistical support as well as dispatch support, and maintain documentation/records for wildland fire incidents in our jurisdiction. CWICC is responsible for supplying intelligence information relating to incidents and resource status to the DNR Resource Protection Division, agency cooperators, managers, and the Northwest Coordination Center (NWCC), which is the Geographical Area Coordination Center (GACC) for the northwest area. CWICC processes approximately 1,000 incidents annually, primarily fire and aviation related. However, the center also assists with medical, search/rescue, hazardous materials, and other all-risk incidents.

Southeast Region Department of Natural Resources Fire Units include: Chelan (including portions of Douglas County), Kittitas, Yakima, Klickitat, and Blue Mountain units.

Northeast Region Department of Natural Resources Fire Units includes a portion of the South Okanogan Fire Unit in the Methow Valley.
Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest Ranger Districts include: Methow Valley RDs; Chelan & Entiat RDs (Columbia River Division); Wenatchee River RD, Cle Elum RDs, and Naches RDs.

Bureau of Land Management lands on the East slopes of the Cascade incude; Adams, Benton, Chelan, Douglas, Franklin, Grant, Kittitas, Klickitat, Yakima and Walla Walla counties.

Mid-Columbia National Wildlife Refuge Complex provides management and support for seven national wildlife refuges and one national monument. These lands are on or near the Columbia River in Washington and Oregon, including Cold Springs, Columbia, Conboy Lake, McKay Creek, McNary, Toppenish and Umatilla National Wildlife Refuges and Hanford Reach National Monument.