Fire District Board approves budget, promotions and new equipment

The governing board of the Maricopa Fire District met Thursday evening to approve the 2005-2006 budget, the investment and reinvestment of excess funds by the Pinal County Treasurer, an agreement with the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System for its full-time employees, several promotions and the acquisition of new equipment.

Tom McCarville of the Casa Grande law firm of McCarville, Cooper & Vasquez introduced Domingo DeGrazia to the board. DeGrazia, recently admitted to the Arizona Bar, will serve as legal counsel to Maricopa’s Fire District.

The board adopted by-laws, policies and procedures for the district. “This is merely a starting point,” explained director Oliver Anderson. “Things will come up which require change, and board action can change the by-laws at any time.”

Promotions
Captain Dan Ashton was promoted to Chief of Operations. Interim Chief Bill Kelleher read a letter of support for Ashton from the United Firefighters of Maricopa, AFL-CIO. The letter described Ashton as “more than capable and qualified” for the position.

Captain Eddie Rodriquez will now be Chief of Fire Safety. Kelleher described Rodriguez as “congenial and easy to work with, someone who knows the district well and whose fluency in Spanish has helped the department many times.”

A salary increase was approved for Cindy Inskeep. “It would be very difficult to outline everything Cindy does for us,” said Kelleher. “It’s incredible to keep up with her.”

Equipment and building acquisitions
The board accepted Absolute Steel’s bid of $26,694.61 for the purchase of a steel building 18 feet wide and 50 feet long. The structure will be used to house the recently purchased ladder truck. Built at a slant, the building will assure easier vehicle exit when responding to fire calls.

The purchase of a Ford pick-up truck with a camper shell at the cost of $69,600 will provide a command vehicle for the Maricopa Fire Department. Chief Ashton explained, “The vehicle will be used on scene for incident command. A desk in the back will allow me to assign crews, do task sheets and maintain specialized equipment.” The truck should be available to the department by August 12.

Carlos Shulz of Southwest Ambulance, who will come on board as a department EMT later this month, explained the benefits of the Lifepak 12, a portable device which provides defibrillation and monitoring of patients. Such a unit is required for advanced life support.

Shulz explained, “The most functions you can have is beneficial to the patient. With these units we would be able to monitor different levels that you ordinarily wouldn’t be able to do. We want to give the best care we can. The read outs provide documentation of what went on at the scene.”

The board voted unanimously to purchase three refurbished Lifepak 12 units at $15,000 each. Each unit is equipped with a battery and charger and carries a one-year warranty. J.W. Salazar commented, “It would behoove us to get the extended warranty. It would be a nominal fee juxtaposed with a new unit.”

Reports
Inskeep reported that firefighters Danny Ashton and Richard Jackson have been promoted to the rank of captain. As of July 25, six new firefighters, including the first female, will become part of the department. Four paramedics have also been hired.

Kelleher added, “We should have six more full-time personnel in a month. Then we will have 24 people in the department.”

Ashton reviewed the recent fires and critical incidents in the area. Commending the work of his team, he explained, “We lost six homes to arson. We’ve had six men protecting 15,000 residents. Normally four engine companies of four men each would respond to a structure fire. We had six men.”

Rodriguez has been working to finalize the Lennar agreement for the Alterra fire station. Weed abatement is continuing, as are the safety inspections of new businesses. He has been in contact with Global Water regarding low water pressure and will test the new Pima Butte Elementary School’s sprinkler system within the next few days.

HAZMAT presentation
Joni Ashton, who recently returned from a SAFER grant conference in Washington, D.C., expressed the need for HAZMAT personnel in Maricopa. Given the proximity to residential and business structures of both the Union Pacific railroad tracks and the Kinder Morgan pipeline, hazardous material might become a real, future issue in Maricopa. Grant monies would provide for the hiring of HAZMAT personnel. The closest such unit is currently in Tucson.

The Maricopa Fire Department is also asking for donations of new, small teddy bears for children who are involved in response incidents. Bears to comfort frightened children may be dropped off at the fire station.