As chief of the Marthasville Volunteer Fire Department I am responsible for the overall direction of the department. I take care of some of the day to day business issues of the department and am the Incident Commander at emergency scenes. During my time as chief I have witnessed much growth and improvement in the department. The amount and level of training that our members are receiving has greatly increased and so has the quality of the fire apparatus. With the purchase two new Pierce pumpers in 2008 we now have the most modern and reliable fleet in the county. I look forward to future years of dedicated service to the residents in our community.
As assistant chief, my responsibilities include fire prevention, taking care of equipment and supplies, and incident command at emergency scenes. For fire prevention I coordinate the Fire Prevention Week held every October. During this time the department inspects the schools and day care centers in our district checking for fire hazards, properly working fire alarms, and that every student and teacher knows what to do in case of a fire. In addition to these inspections, we also hold a demonstration and safety seminar for the 5th graders at Station 3 in Dutzow. Here the students learn how safely and properly use a fire extinguisher, watch firefighters use rescue tools to cut up a car, chase a fire hose, and get a tour of the fire trucks and ambulance.
As training officer, my job is to make sure that department members are receiving the proper training that they need to safely and efficiently handle emergency situations. Because the fire department is called upon to handle such a wide variety of emergencies, it is an essential that our firefighters participate in an equally varied training program. Some broad subject topics that we train in are hazardous materials, medical emergencies, vehicle accidents, wild land fires, and structure fires. The environment that firefighters work in is continuously changing. Houses are constructed in different ways and with different building materials affecting the way we can fight house fires. Cars are being designed differently, being built with stronger metal and some even being powered by electricity or hybrid technology. These constant changes affect where firefighters can cut on a car when a person is trapped inside. Because of all of this change, I must make sure that the firefighters receive up to date training to handle new types of emergencies and also make sure that they are well trained to be proficient in handling the typical day to day emergency calls in the Marthasville area.