Garden City Fire District Meeting

Reported by Randall Knight

GARDEN CITY,Utah - The meeting was held 20 Sept 2012 at 6:00 PM at the Fire Station.  Travis Hobbs was not in attendance because he has relocated to Hyrum.  Travis was a very active board member who provided several valuable recommendations at each meeting and will be missed.

Fire Chief, Dan Kurek, received quotes to replace a foam pump on engine 40 and presented the quotes to the board for review and comment.  The board decided to delay the purchase of the pumps until next fiscal year at Dan's recommendation.

An inverter and plug to convert 115 VAC to a 12 VDC trickle charger for Rescue truck 40 was ordered and received.  Dan will have the assistant chief install this when time allows.

The four county Fire District Chiefs are working on paging criteria.  The chiefs will compile their protocols on page outs, modify them as required to meet their needs collectively and then submit them to the dispatch manager, Emily Weston, for her review and comments before they will be released to thedispatchers.

The mutual aid agreement between Garden City Fire District and Cache County is moving along. Cache County would like to add extrication to the agreement that is already in place for wild land and hazmat.  The results will be coordinated with the county attorney to ensure it is legal and covers everybody's liabilities with respect to responses from Tony Grove to the county line for the Garden City Fire District and in Rich County for the Logan City Fire Department.

There is an issue concerning the pay for being called outside the district and is still in limbo.  Terry Allen, chair of fire board, has been calling a few of the Cache County chief's to see if they have had the same issue and how they resolved it. Logan's Fire Chief Peterson has already been through this and will give Allen a call to provide him info for how the policy and procedure need to be updated to cover this issue.

Brush truck 42 has had problems with the battery running down and the problem was isolated to the alternator or light bar. A new light bar was purchased and Dan will make new mounting brackets to install it, in the next few weeks.  While the light bar was removed, the battery stayed charged so the alternator doesn't need to be replaced.  Brush truck 41 had leaks that have been fixed.

The chairman of the Fire Board, Terry Allan, wants another workshop setup to review the policies in regard to employee contract's and raises in preparation for next year's budget.  Terry wants the workshop meeting to be held on Oct 1st.

Dan wants the board to remove the requirement for a fitness test for all fire fighters because there is no age limit for volunteers and everybody can be a value to the fire department.  A fitness test can be provided to determine a person's capability and then be assigned to a task that aligns with each person's ability; i.e. fire fighter, truck driver, pump operator, clerical etc.

There are two board vacancies because Travis has relocated to Hyrum and Bill England has been on the board for the maximum allowed time.  Terry wants the replacement approval for the two new members to be at the same time and not be spread over a longer period of time.  The deadline for applicants to submit their letter is 5:00 PM, 30 Sept.

The Christmas dinner selection process was discussed and set for 6 Dec right after the meeting.  The board will come up with a menu and Dan will submit it for a bid from the local restaurants. The dinner will include the Laketown Fire Department as it was last year so adequate space will be needed.

A problem with dispatcher not having the correct phone numbers surfaced last month and Ben Negus recommended the department buy a new cell phone and give it to the person in charge.  The dispatcher would call that number for all emergencies.  The board agreed that all cell phone numbers for the three people who could be in charge be provided to the dispatcher and those leads to know the correct emergency numbers they may need to call.   Ben restated the dispatcher should be required to call one number to get the person in charge and not have to go down a list.  The board determined to get a second opinion from Clint England.  Allen also requested Dan to ask the volunteer fighters for their recommendations.

Several citizens have been asking how much longer the fire restriction will be enforced.  Dan said a review meeting will be held to determine how much longer the fire restriction will be in place and the result will be posted.

Apparently there is a reimbursement contract with the State when the equipment and personnel respond to various emergencies at the state level.  The current contract is being reviewed and the reimbursement will be based on the specific type of vehicles and personnel called out.

Dan is trying to acquire a newer tractor for the tender and hopes to be able to get one before next summer.  So the board decided to wait until next year before they spend $3000 on tires for the old one.The fire department responded to 2 wildland fires, 1 hazmat spill, 1 generator fire, denied numerous fire permits and assisted on 8 medical runs.

Three of the firefighters went to a National Fire Academy in Maryland this month. They reported it was very valuable and would recommend this class for all firefighters to attend.  They learned how to determine the cause and origin of fires. There are a lot of situations where the firemen destroy the evidence while they are fighting the fire so additional training is required to be more surgical in their fighting tactics whenever possible.

Tests will be conducted next month to validate operation of the new narrow band radio system. Dan reported that all emergency services are being required to switch to the narrow band radios.

Dan said he received a thank you letter and read it to those in attendance in regard to the Cherimoya hill fire.  They were very pleased with the fast response and professionalism of the firefighters and all the work they did to contain the spread of the fire.