[KHTS] – Firefighters from the local division in the Santa Clarita Valley kicked of their boots to raise funds for The Muscular Dystrophy Association.

A group of about 10 firefighters walked up and down the intersection of Sierra Highway and Soledad Canyon Road collecting money for this cause.

The three-day campaign started Thursday and will go on until Saturday, June 11 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

“Yesterday we collected about $4,000 and we are expecting to collect more during this weekend,” said Scott Salhus, a Los Angeles County Fire Department Battalion Chief who covers the Canyon Country, Saugus and Agua Dulce areas. “We collect about $12,000-$18,000 every year just in this intersection.”

Salhus, who has participated for about seven years, said the feedback from the community has been positive.

“We just had a lady drive by in tears saying the MDA helped her son,” Salhus said. “That is the positive effect.”

Muscular dystrophy is a hereditary condition marked by progressive weakening and wasting of the muscles.

This is the 13th year the LACoFD participates in the “Fill the Boot” campaign. The International Association of Firefighters has been helping MDA for over 60 years, according to officials.

“The community around here is just fantastic,” said Ian Good, LACoFD firefighter and Hazmat Specialist. “To raise so much money just in this area is a testament to the generosity of these folks.”

Good, who was the intersection coordinator for the “C Shift” on Friday, said he has been helping with the campaign for a few years as well.

“It is our job to help; that is what we signed up for,” Good said. “We’ll do anything we can do to help by extension through this cause.”

LACoFD officials have raised $3.5 million throughout the past 12 years.

There are 26 intersections all throughout the Los Angeles County alone who contribute to these amounts.

“We are doing a good thing helping MDA families and that is enough incentive for us to do it,”said David Dantic, fire inspector for the LACoFD.

MDA is a nationwide association that helps people fighting muscle disease, according to their website. They fund research to find treatments and cures to support families living with the disease.

For more information on how to donate, visit their [website].

– Stacey Arevalo