Visit us at WWW.FFCA.ORG 33 Tavares Announces Firefighter of the Year By Helen Vilissov, Admin. Officer Congratulations to Carsten Kieffer who was recently named Firefighter of the Year for Tavares Fire Rescue. Carsten began his career with Tavares May 31, 2011. He was promoted to Engineer March 22, 2014. During the same year, Carsten began working on his Paramedic credentials, which was achieved in September. On April 16, 2017 Carsten was promoted to Lieutenant, our first Medic Lieutenant. Carsten is from Denmark where he served in the Army of Denmark as a Staff Seargent. One of his assignments was to serve as the Queen’s guard. The Royal Life Guards is an infantry regiment of the Danish Army, founded in 1658 by King Frederik III. It serves in two roles: as a front line combat unit, and as a guard/ceremonial unit to the Danish monarchy. Carsten has a few auxiliary duties, one of them is to coordinate vehicle maintenance. He also serves as Quality Assurance for report writing. While balancing his career and being supportive to his young family, Carsten also finds the time to volunteer as a guardian for Honor Flights and is active with the Special Olympics. Pictured L to R: Carsten Kieffer and Chief Richard Keith, Fire Chief Claw Machine Rescue By Gregory G. Sutton, Battalion Chief/Training, PIO Often times we say to ourselves that you never know what the next shift will bring. The unexpected ways we get to help people in their time of need. That’s what draws people to public safety, the unexpected. Well today was no exception. Little Mason was enjoying some food and decided he wanted a stuffed animal. He wanted it so bad, he climbed into the game to get that toy!! Thankfully he was never in any distress as one of our own Lt.’s happened to be there off duty and assessed the situation. Engine 10 led by Lt. Abernathy, made short work of the situation. Driver Operator Lane and Firefighter George were able to get Mason out with minimal damage to the game. We love a happy ending and are glad everything worked out. Mom, Mason and friends went back to eating dinner. Volusia County Fire Rescue Visits Local School By Lieutenant Al Ward Vehicle Day at one Volusia County elementary school proved fun for the firefighters from Station 36 as well as for the students. Firefighters spent time fielding fire safety questions from the children while talking with them about Engine 36’s capabilities. Photos by Lt. Al Ward, VCFR (FF/PM Mike Brasol, Jr.(blue shirt) and Lt. Mark Marella (white shirt) Promotions and Hirings at Pinellas Park Fire By Suzanne Boisvert, Emergency Management Debra Rose is the new director of administration responsible for managing a four-person administrative staff, drafting the annual budget, and overseeing maintenance of facilities and vehicles. She was formerly the city’s library and cultural affairs administrator in charge of the Community Redevelopment Area (CRA) and arts district. Debra holds a masters and doctorate in political science from the University of Florida. Rob Day is the new EMS lieutenant for the EMS division responsible for managing the department’s special needs evacuation program, overseeing injury prevention community outreach, and acting as a direct resource to medical personnel in the field. Lt. Day joined PPFD as a FF/EMT and became a paramedic in 2001. He is a squad and engine operator and member of the Hazmat Team. Lt. Day was awarded Firefighter of the Year in 2005 and Paramedic of the Year in 2009. Anthony Iorio is the new A-shift lieutenant responsible for a five-person crew at Pinellas Park Fire Station 34. Lt. Iorio joined PPFD in 2011 as a FF/EMT and is a truck, engine, and squad operator. He is on the Technical Rescue Team and Hazmat Team and was awarded Firefighter of the Year in 2012. Lt. Iorio has 15 years of service in the United States Coast Guard (USCG) and United States Air Force Reserves (USFAR). Chris Riley is the new C-shift lieutenant responsible for a five- person crew at Pinellas Park Fire Station 35. Lt. Riley joined PPFD as a FF/EMT in 1995 and is a truck, engine and squad operator. He is a member of the Hazmat Team and has completed his fire officer certification. Lt. Riley was awarded Firefighter of the Year for the department in 2001 and 2013. Lakeland Welcomes New Firefighters By Janel Vasallo, MPH, Public Information/Education Officer The Lakeland Fire Department (LFD) is pleased to announce the hiring of five new firefighters that began duty on Monday, March 5, 2018. The new hires are filling vacancies created as a result of recent retirements and internal promotions. The new firefighters take part in the department’s month-long orientation program at the LFD Training Center. Although all the new hires are certified firefighters, this training course is designed to teach the new firefighters how to do things the “Lakeland” way. They review a full spectrum of practical skills they need to perform on the job as well as emergency medical training before being released into the field. “Our hiring committee is confident that it selected the best available candidates and it’s comforting to know that the new firefighters joining our ranks are highly skilled and qualified to continue providing the high quality emergency services our department is known for,” said Training Chief John Almskog, coordinator of the hiring effort and leader of the department’s four-week orientation program. The new hires bring the department to a total of 171 personnel. April 2018 FFS.QXD 4/10/18 2:00 PM Page 33