ORFD hosts Firewise workshop

On August 10, 2012 the Oak Ridge Fire Department hosted a Firewise workshop at Pollard Auditorium. The workshop was put on by the Tennessee Division of Forestry and the ORFD to help local officials and community leaders gain a better understanding of the Firewise concepts.  People from four different counties attended this one day seminar and participated in lecture activities as well as group learning projects. 

Dr. Shep Zetiker from Virginia Tech University was the guest speaker and brought over 30 years of experience in dealing with wildland urban interface problems to the event.  Participants in the program ranged from city planners to local fire chiefs. 

The National Fire Protection Association's (NFPA) Firewise Communities program encourages local solutions for wildfire safety by involving homeowners, community leaders, planners, developers, firefighters, and others in the effort to protect people and property from wildfire risks.
The program is co-sponsored by the USDA Forest Service, the US Department of the Interior, and the National Association of State Foresters.

For more information about the Firewise program visit http://firewise.org/.

Several ORFD Firefighters Receive New Certifications

Assistant Chief Josh Waldo reports that the Oak Ridge Fire Department training division recently got test results back from the State fire commission for several ORFD employees.

Congratulations to the following people for continuing their education and obtaining higher certification levels:

Firefighter II  

Adam Daugherty

Pumper Driver Operator

Seth Burnett

Fire Instructor I

Craig Humphrey

Joey Smith

Kevin Brown

Brandon Hitchcock

Stephen King

Austin Keathley

Matt Lougheed

Steve London

Ben Taylor

Matt Freshour

ORFD Training News

For Immediate Release

August 7, 2012

OAK RIDGE FIRE DEPARTMENT FINISHES SECOND IN TRAINING HOURS AT STATE FIRE ACADEMY

Oak Ridge, Tenn.—Fire Chief Darryl Kerley released information about the fire department’s total training hours through the Tennessee Fire and Codes Academy for fiscal year 2012.      

Tennessee Fire and Codes Academy Director Roger Hawks recently informed the Oak Ridge Fire Department that they completed 3,970 hours of training which ranked 2^nd in the state out of 734 fire departments. 

Members of the Oak Ridge Fire Department completed training in multiple disciplines such as basic firefighter, arson investigation, fire instructor, fire officer, and pump operations.  The training hours through the academy require a tremendous amount of time and dedication by the members of the organization but only represent a portion of the training completed by Oak Ridge Fire Department members.  As of July 31 members of the ORFD have completed a total of 9,397 hours of training since January 1 through the State Academy, the National Fire Academy, and in-house training.  The department strives to see that each member of the organization achieves 240 hours of training per firefighter each year as required by the National Fire Protection Association and the Insurance Service Office.

As a result of these recent trainings the department recently had 10 members achieve national certification as Fire Instructor I. 

For Information contact: Josh Waldo @ 865-382-7267

Two new ORFD officers promoted.

Below is an email from Chief Darryl Kerley regarding two recent promotions in the ORFD. Congratulations to BC Jody Durham and Captain Ray Burney!

From: Kerley, Darryl
Sent: Thursday, February 02, 2012 8:31 PM
Subject: Oak Ridge Fire Department Promotions

Late yesterday afternoon the personnel department informed me that Mr. Watson had signed the pink slips approving our recommendations to fill the 2 open officer positions.   I am pleased to officially announce Jody Durham as the new A-Shift Battalion Chief and Ray Burney as the new B-Shift Captain.  The promotions take affect this Sunday.   I would like to thank all of the applicants who participated in the promotion process.  It was a difficult decision as the top 3 Battalion Chief candidates were tied at 17.00 points in the resume score, separated by only 3 points on the written test and were 2.34 points apart in the assessment center.   This speaks well of the officers we have working in the fire department.

Please take a moment to congratulate Battalion Chief Jody Durham and Captain Ray Burney when you see them.

Darryl Kerley, Chief

Oak Ridge Fire Department

200 South Tulane Ave. 

Post Office Box 1

Oak Ridge, TN 37831-0001

HQ       865-425-3520

Office 865-425-3522

Cell     865-755-5364 

Fax    865-425-3428

dkerley@cortn.org

Three ORFD Firefighters receive new certifications

Congratulations to Kevin Brown and Michael Vanosdale on the successful completion of the their Firefighter II certification from the Tennessee Commission on Fire Fighting.

Congratulations to Chard Ward on the successful completion of his Hazardous Materials Operations Technician certification from the Tennessee Commission on Fire Fighting.

Get to Know a Firefighter - Capt. Mike Friley

Most people will go their entire life and never get a chance to actually meet a firefighter. If they do get to, it's usually during an emergency and they don't really get to know them.

In this edition of "Get to Know a Firefighter" we introduce Captain Mike Friley. As always, our goal is to let you see into our world in the hopes that you realize we are just ordinary men and women doing an extraordinary job.

 

DISPATCH: What is your name?

MIKE: Mike Friley.

DISPATCH: Where are you from?

MIKE: Florida.

DISPATCH: How long have you been a firefighter?

MIKE: Since 1994.

DISPATCH: How long have you worked for the City of Oak Ridge?

MIKE: 12 years.

DISPATCH: Were you a firefighter before you came to work for ORFD?

MIKE: Yes. At Rural Metro Fire Department.

DISPATCH: Are you married?

MIKE: Yes, to Joy.

DISPATCH: Do you have any children? 

MIKE: Yes. We have 2.

DISPATCH: How old are they?

MIKE: Hannah is 15 and Jonah is 11.

DISPATCH: What was your job before you became a firefighter?

MIKE: I was a Paramedic for Anderson County Ambulance Service. Before that I was a deckhand and bouncer on the Knoxville Riverboat for college parties. It's hard to throw someone out of a bar when it's in the middle of the river.

DISPATCH: Why did you want to become a firefighter?

MIKE: It seemed like a challenging job where every day would be something different. That has definitely held true.

DISPATCH: What is your favorite thing about being a firefighter?

MIKE: Definitely, the other firefighters. Firefighting is a team effort. Without each other, we can't accomplish a thing. I have also found firefighters to be some of the most resourceful people I've ever met and most of them love their job.

DISPATCH: What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you?

MIKE: I once won an essay contest at Fulton High School writing about Black History month. My English teacher had to come get me out of in-school suspension to accept the award. Ironically, I was there because I had skipped her class.

 

Capt. Mike Friley

 

Get to Know a Firefighter - FFE Duane Chase

Most people will go their entire life and never get a chance to actually meet a firefighter. If they do get to, it's usually during an emergency and they don't really get to know them.

The ORFD Dispatch is happy to introduce something we call "Get to Know a Firefighter". Periodically, we'll introduce you to one of Oak Ridge's Bravest. Our goal is to let you see into our world in the hopes that you realize we are just ordinary men and women doing an extraordinary job.

DISPATCH: What is your name?

DUANE: Duane Chase.

DISPATCH: Where are you from?

DUANE: Oak Ridge.

DISPATCH: How long have you been a firefighter?

DUANE: 17 yrs.

DISPATCH: How long have you worked for the City of Oak Ridge?

DUANE: 2 yrs.      

DISPATCH: Where you a firefighter before you came to work for ORFD?

DUANE: Yes 1.5 yrs. at Clinton Fire Department and I’ve been a volunteer at Marlow Fire Department since June of 1994.

DISPATCH: Are you married?

DUANE: Yes to Melissa.

DISPATCH: Do you have any children? How many?

DUANE: Yes. We have 2.

DISPATCH: How old are they?

DUANE: Allyson is 14 and Caden is 8.

DISPATCH: What was your job before you became a firefighter?

DUANE: I worked in a tire factory in Clinton.

DISPATCH: Why did you want to become a firefighter?

DUANE: My best friend talked me into volunteering and I have been hooked ever since. I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.

DISPATCH: What is your favorite thing about being a firefighter?

DUANE: It’s really hard to put my finger on a specific thing. Everything about the fire service, that’s my favorite thing.

DISPATCH: What is one thing people would be surprised to know about you?

DUANE: As a child, becoming a firefighter was never my dream. My grandfather owned and operated an excavating service and for as long as I can remember all I wanted to do was drive a dump truck or operate a piece of equipment so that I could be just like him.

Firefighter Engineer Duane Chase