- SPARTAN MOTORS, INC. announced the launch of Detroit Truck Manufacturing™ (DTM), a captive channel supplier of fabricated aluminum cabs for Spartan’s fire trucks as well as its cab and chassis product it supplies to more than 40 OEM fire truck manufacturers. DTM will enable Spartan to achieve greater flexibility through further insulating the organization from risk in its broader supply base, optimizing its cost structure and quality control efforts. Residing on five acres in Madison Heights, Michigan, this new facility will improve quality while reducing lead times by using world-class flexible manufacturing technologies. www.spartanmotors.com.
- The ORANGE COUNTY (FL) FIRE RESCUE DEPARTMENT (OCFRD) has teamed up with the FF (Firefighter) Research Group to collect data and information taken from 3-D body scans of female firefighters. The goal is to create a database that equipment manufacturers can use to design gear specifically to meet the needs of female firefighters. The data collected will benefit women in the fire service, reducing their risk of injury and even death. The OCFRD has twice the number of women firefighters than the national average, and those numbers are expected to grow. In 2018, the agency graduated one of its largest recruit classes of women. www.ocfl.net/EmergencySafety/FireRescue.aspx.
- VECTOR SOLUTIONS held its second-annual Fire Truck Pull on September 27, 2019, near its San Diego, California, office to benefit the Burn Institute, a nonprofit health agency providing fire and burn prevention education programs and burn survivor support services. Vector’s inaugural Fire Truck Pull, held in 2018, raised more than $10,000 to support the Wildland Firefighters Foundation for fallen firefighters. This year’s Fire Truck Pull featured trucks loaned from San Diego (CA) Fire Rescue and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The event brought together 24 teams of competitors to see who can pull a fire truck the fastest, all while raising money for the Burn Institute. www.vectorsolutions.com.
names in the news
BARBARA HUBER took over as chief of the Pueblo (CO) Fire Department (PFD) on August 31, making her the first female chief in the history of the department. She takes over for previous chief Shawn Shelton, who retired in April. Rick Potter had been serving as acting chief in Shelton’s place. Huber has been a member of the PFD since 1998, and a captain since 2007. She spent 20 years in the military, serving in the National Guard and Air Force Reserve before retiring as a master sergeant. Huber also worked briefly as an El Paso County deputy sheriff. In 1998, she became just the second female firefighter in the history of the PFD.
CHARLES RYAN took over as chief of the Tuscon (AZ) Fire Department on September 30. He replaces Joe Gulotta, who had been serving as the interim chief since January 2018 after previous chief Jim Critchley retired. Gulotta will transition back into his previous position of assistant chief. Ryan has worked in fire service since 1994, most recently as an assistant chief with the Fairfax County (VA) Fire and Rescue Department (FCFRD), where he led the department’s Business Services Bureau. He has also served as a FCFRD deputy chief and battalion chief.
MICHAEL SNIDER took over as the new chief of the Lee’s Summit (MO) Fire Department (LSFD) on August 26. He arrives from the Liberty (MO) Fire Department (LFD), where he served as chief for the past five years. Snider replaces Chief Rick Poeschl, who retired in March. Snider is a native of Fort Osage, Missouri. When he was a teenager, Snider convinced the Fort Osage (MO) Fire Department to restart an explorers program the department had disbanded because of lack of interest. He worked his way up through the ranks at the LFD beginning in 1998, first as a firefighter and paramedic.
