2023 Annual Report

2023 Year in Review

Hello, and thank you for taking the time to review our 2023 Annual Closeout Report. We are excited every year to release the information in this report to our Elected Officials, Members, and Citizens. It gives us an opportunity to share our accomplishments and create a high level of trust with our community by proactively sharing how our resources are being utilized.

2023 proved to be one of our most accomplished and challenging years to date. While planning has always been one of our highest priorities, we have been challenged by external influences, such as new laws, natural disasters, and political influence, in developing accurate plans for the future. While our community has grown at a steady rate, our calls for service have dropped by 2% over the previous year. Many agencies only measure success by an increase in calls. Regardless of the challenges in accomplishing our goals, I am proud that our crews and staff never let these obstacles affect our high level of care for our customers. 

Our staff has been incredibly efficient in finding ways to meet our 2023 goals and still handle our day-to-day responsibilities. We have been able to open our Ponderosa Park station (Station 272) 80% of the time in the last 12 months. This means that our customers in Ponderosa Park and throughout the entire 111 square mile district have had an additional advance life support ambulance, wildland, and structural response beyond our normal 2 station response. None of this would have happened without our reserve and part-time responders. Elizabeth Fire was also the first agency to close out the FEMA reimbursement process for the 2023 floods thanks to the diligent work of our administrative staff. 

Our recent grant funding to replace our Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) has allowed us to check off yet another expensive capital replacement. Our regional Assistance to Firefighter (AFG) Grant funded almost 1 million dollars to Elbert County fire departments. Elizabeth Fire received over 30% of that funding. 

We are continuing to expand our capabilities through technical training and resource management. We have increased our ice rescue and technical rescue programs so that our citizens will not have to experience delays in response when that expertise is needed. We have also been able to maintain our quick average response times to ensure that critical care starts instantly when needed. 

Looking forward to 2024, we plan to further expand our services by staffing Station 272 100% of the time. We will also expand our capabilities and knowledge for our leaders and aspiring leaders through regular training events and succession planning. We will also be looking for opportunities to train our crews together more often without leaving response areas uncovered. 

2024 is already proving to be a dynamic year with so many new experiences and influences. Luckily, we have an entire team of incredible responders to handle whatever comes our way. We look forward to the challenges and we truly value our customers in our everyday decisions.

This year, the department utilized increased staffing and technology to reduce risk within our community. We hired a fire prevention specialist, Ryan Seng, to help with many bureau inspection activities. On average, local fire departments respond to around 4,000 construction fires annually, according to the Nation Fire Protection Association. Ryan has conducted over 40 hours of commercial and residential construction site inspections. He is working with construction crews to correct fire apparatus access and fire safety violations on the construction sites. He has also been instrumental in our existing business inspections program by managing that program and helping crews gain compliance. The on-duty crews completed 100% of their business inspections, and Ryan is finishing up the school inspections. He has been a great addition to the bureau. 

Erin Loeks, our Fire and Life Safety Educator, had her busiest Fire Prevention Week, or, should I say, month. She had so many activities planned at the schools that we used the whole month of October and into November to teach fire prevention. She was able to teach in small class settings as well as larger audiences for all ages within the school district. Her new program about “Making Good Choices” has been well received in the Middle School, where we are seeing an increase in Juvenile Fire Setters. The on-duty staff continues to be vested in community outreach, whether it is reading to the preschool or conducting tours of the fire stations. One of the biggest changes to our outreach are Erin’s personalized social media educational messages. She has been utilizing the on-duty crews for her safety messages instead of using a generic message, and the community is loving them.

We implemented FlowMSP this year to update our building pre-plans. The software allows for a convenient way to document critical information on structures in a matter of minutes. In addition, a tablet that is running FlowMSP is located in the back seat of the front-line engines for firefighters to access important building information on the way to an incident.

The new construction in the community has stayed on track, and we have collected $212,682 of impact fees and $164,750 of developer contributions this year. We were also able to update our Rational Nexus Study, which showed an increase on the impact new construction has on our District. These new fees go into effect on Jan. 1, 2024. 

The Google grant allowed us to purchase new iPads as our mobile data units in all the front-line apparatus. We can securely manage all users, apps, and data for the iPad and department phones from the administration building. In addition, we have started a replacement schedule for laptops and computers to keep up with the technology that is crucial for our communication and operations for the district. This year, we were able to replace 6 failing or older laptops, and we will start looking into server replacement solutions in 2024.

Photo of crews reading to the schools

Photo of crews giving a station tour

Photo of crews giving an engine demo

Photo of crews during a cooking safety class

On the employee front, it was a very active year. We added about 23 new candidates to our reserve program, but 14 resigned and 4 were promoted to part-time employees. At year-end, we have 22 active members of the reserve program. We have 14 part-time firefighter paramedic employees. We were also able to promote one part-time paramedic to full-time to add a paramedic to A Shift in December. Our total full-time employees are 26. In the last quarter of 2023, we started reworking our reserve program process. We hope this gives this process more structure while making it easier to follow. We had one of our firefighters resign at the end of May, so we were able to promote one of our part-time employees to full-time. With our growing district, we were able to add a part-time Fire Prevention Specialist in June. He has been a great addition to our staff. 

At the beginning of 2023, we moved to a new investment pool for our main investment bank. The pool has the ability to have a Term Investment account. We were able to open one account with $500k. I was able to roll this account over 2 times in 2023. We were about to get over $20k in interest. Our other main banking and pooled accounts also benefited from the increasing interest rate from the Federal reserve. We were able to collect over $133k in interest for 2023. I do not think we will get the same amount in 2024, but it was great to see for this year. 

In June of 2023, we were granted an Assistance to Firefighter (AFG) Grant from FEMA for regional SCBA equipment. Along with 4 other departments, we were able to purchase 110 SCBA units and 48 additional masks at the end of 2023. This grant is totaled at $963,574, of which we have spent $875,900 so far in 2023 for these items. We will complete the grant in 2024 with the purchase of some batteries, battery chargers, and RIT packs. For EFPD, we were able to replace 29 SCBA units for our line employees.

Photos of SCBAs purchased with AFG Grant

Happy New Year, everyone! 2023 proved to be a bit of a challenging year, but at the end of a challenge, it’s rewarding to look back and be able to say that I’m very fortunate to be a part of this organization and proud of our members at all levels. Throughout the challenges, we not only made it to the other side, but we met the challenges head on and excelled. Through the great times and rough spots, we maintained a high level of service and support for our customers, which, in the end, is why we are here! 

Here's a quick overview of the highlights of 2023 from Operations: 

Station 271: 

• Replacement of two bay door openers and hardware. (Two additional doors budgeted for in 2024). 
• Complete kitchen remodel. 
• Plymovent upgrades to new sensors improving reliability and maintenance. 
• New LED lighting in bays and remainder of living areas. 
• Training prop rebuild. 

Membership: 

• Completed the testing process for 2023 and 2024. 
• Initiated ride-along component to application process for new recruits for better evaluation of candidates. 
• Added additional member to the Water Ops group in the north end of the district.

CAD: 

• Cleaned up the Water Ops paging group and revamped the way they are notified of calls to alleviate them having to monitor radios throughout the nights and only notify them of fire calls. 
• Additional medic units added to all fire call types. First medic unit is designated as fire operation personnel. Second medic is dedicated to the medical group for transports, rehab, etc. 
• Converted all response plans from an apparatus based plan to a call type based plan. This allowed me the ability to make changes quickly and easily to response plans based on needs and without effecting other call types that I could not identify when making changes. This is something that happens in the background and doesn’t effect operations greatly but was very important for simplicity of future changes and reliability. 
• Backup unit types added to all run cards, including backup operations radio channels. 
• Second tender added to all fire call types in non-hydranted areas. An additional two tenders were added to second alarms for a total of four tenders on all non-hydranted fire call types. 
• Separated hydranted from non-hydranted areas and created new response plans for our hydranted areas that were still calling for a tender response. 
• Individual response plans built for all fire call types on large commercial structures and multi-family occupancies. These plans added additional apparatus, including mutual aid aerial devices, additional engines and medics, bureau response, and additional command staff. 
• Working with both DRDC and county mapping to correct private roads and driveways that are not shown as access roads to addresses. This prevents our mapping software to route us into calls when these roads are not recognized. This will be an ongoing project.
• Realignment and joining of two of our mapping quadrants to reflect new construction and align our current response plans.

Photo of Engine 271 during repair work

Operations: 

• Held retirement party for Lt. Travis Tinnes and promoted FF/STO Chris Reeder to A-Shift Lt. 
• 1” forestry lines replaced with grant from the El Pomar Foundation. All line replaced with consistent fittings. Wildland structure protection lines added to all Type I engines to be consistent with our response plans. 
• Failed cistern at Evans Park removed from service and all response plans corrected to reflect change. 
• Cistern at Station 272 repaired with new hydrant drafting point added. New adapters were ordered to facilitate filling from all tenders at this location. Cistern fittings corrected at Double R Construction cistern. 
• Began using hot keys on MDTs and tablets to respond to calls with dispatch. This has cleaned up radio traffic. 
• Tech Rescue program started with joint monthly trainings held with South Metro Fire. Two members have completed an 11 day Tech Rescue school and brought back valuable information to the crews for our responses to these call types.
• We finished the year running 1,390 calls for service. 
• Through the third quarter of 2023, we ran 8 structure fires, 3 vehicle fires, and 5 “Other” fires. Two of these fires were high profile, with the first being in a large commercial manufacturing facility at Raven Industries off of CR 166. The other was a residential explosion resulting in a fire and a total loss of that structure. We were very fortunate not to have had any significant injuries or casualties from that event. 
• We showed a total dollar loss of $819,838 from fires in the district. We had two reported fire injuries and one non-fire related injury on calls. 
• I am waiting for the final summary report from the state on the total number of fires last year in the district and will report those numbers in coming reports.

• Our members were issued 22 new certs this year. The certs issued were for eleven new Firefighter 1/HMOPS (including new recruits, reciprocity, and challenged tests), four DO/Utility, three Firefighter II, and four Fire Officer 1. 
• One of the department goals for 2023 was to increase our State written test success rate. We have shown improvement from last year, but we still have room to improve. 
• We had a Fire Instructor/Methodology class scheduled at Kiowa Fire that ended up being cancelled. Four of our members were signed up. This class is getting hard to find, but I'll be working with Chief Lamansky to try to get another one on the books. 
• We started with eight Elizabeth cadets in the 2023 Academy and ended up finishing with five. We lost three of them to career academies with other agencies. Two of these graduates (McGhee and Geislinger) have already been moved into part-time positions.

Photo of 2023 Academy Graduates, promotions, and Command Staff

• It is difficult to log every training hour, but we have put in roughly 5,000 hours for fire training this year. We are still working on being more accurate with logging the hours. 
• We had a member from each shift train with South Metro Fire and Castle Rock Fire to begin our Technical Rescue program. The trainings were beneficial information; we unfortunately don't have the equipment to train all of our members in these skills. What they did learn is how we can safely begin rescues, and how we can prepare scenes while South Metro and/or Castle Rock respond to our scenes. 
• Each shift had live burn training this year, and I was able to throw a BC drill into this training. The drill showed the BCs that our crews are really good at fixing big problems in bad situations, and it also showed us where we can continue to improve. I'll be pushing more of these drills out in 2024. 
• Being a member of the CFTOA has been a great resource for me this year. I've been able to network with other Training Officers and developed strong relationships with members of the Division. I joined a committee to look at revamping the FFI JPRs statewide, but we had to sideline most of the work due to the CMCB versus State certification process. I feel lucky to have the opportunity to be a voice for the rural departments. 
• Sarah and I were enrolled in the 2023 SDA Leadership Academy. I missed a couple of the sessions, but overall, it was a great program. The conference in Keystone was another great networking opportunity and was valuable. 
• The State has moved to a new Haz Mat curriculum beginning in 2024. Our Training Division will have some work to do in order to become familiar with the new curriculum. 
• Station 272 had some significant improvements to the building this year. It has a new roof, new paint, a new cistern, a new front window, and a new water heater. Thanks to Lt. Neisen and Lt. Regan for working together to get these improvements in place. Thanks to Chief Steck for taking on the cistern project. 
• All of our line members completed the EPAT. Every member either stayed very close to last year's performance, or they greatly improved. This proves their commitment to staying in shape, and it makes me wonder if I need to look at making it more challenging in the future. 
• In early 2023, CSU performed our annual cardiac CORE evaluations. We will continue to participate in this program every year. It is a very good preventative health measure for our members. 
• This year, I worked with Paramedic Tommy Gamboa to get him some help with our Peer Support Team. Tommy was our only member who was trained in Peer Support, and he needed some help. We worked together to increase the team from 1 to 4 people. We interviewed a handful of interested members and added Lt. Holt, Firefighter McClain, and myself to the team. The three of us need to attend the weeklong training. I have attempted multiple times to get training from a company that is considered the best in Colorado for these types of programs but have had zero response from them. Paramedic Gamboa does have another option that I'm looking into for this training. I'm excited to have 4 options for our members' support, and I'm sure Tommy would agree that he could use some help. I am applying for a DFPC grant to help fund our program. 
• Lastly, we have received delivery of our new MSA SCBA equipment. We still have a lot of behind the scenes work to do with inventory, but we are moving along. The crews have been fit tested and received training from the vendor who supplied the equipment. The STOs and Lt. Regan have created a minimum training requirement for all members to complete prior to the SCBAs being put into service. I'm confident we will meet our March 1 deadline to get them into service, and we might even be able to do it earlier. I can't thank Chief Steck and Sarah enough for doing all of the legwork to get this grant done.

Photo of the 2023 Academy during a training

Photo of the 2023 Academy during a training

To the board: 2023 was a very busy year, I have highlighted a few of our accomplishments, but this is by no means an all inclusive list. We might not view the daily work and tasks we do as accomplishments; some are hard to even remember. It’s the sum of these small tasks that help grow and enhance our department to what it is today. Every one of the points below was accomplished as a team and would be impossible to achieve otherwise. 

EMS:

• Video Laryngoscopes were added to our ambulance airway kits as an additional tool to aid with difficult airway management. Crews evaluated several different manufacturers based on features, ease of use, practicality, and price. The McGrath VL was determined to be the best choice that met our needs.

Photos of video laryngoscope training

• Over 60 hours of EMS training was offered either through self-paced or in-station education. 
• Recertified all department personnel in BLS CPR by providing five different class dates to accommodate our members’ availability. These classes were all conducted in-house by our department CPR instructors, Lieutenant Steve Dillenbeck and Paramedic Matt Sheikh; thank you for your help! 
• With the help of our paramedics, we were able to consolidate some of the equipment in our EMS bags to be more efficient by reducing excess duplication of supplies and budget expenditures. 

Staffing: 

• The part-time program grew to 16 members during 2023, working a total of 15,583 hours to keep Station 272 open 271 days (74%) out of the year. Additionally, the department held quarterly meetings with part-time personnel to address current and future needs of the program, which has benefited greatly. 
• At the end of the year, we will be losing one of our part-time paramedics, Devin Bertram, so he can dedicate more time to his new assignment at Franktown Fire. Devin has been a dedicated member of Elizabeth Fire for 10 years and will be missed, but we are so excited to see him excel in this new role. Devin, thank you for your commitment over the years, and we wish you the best! 

Grants: 

• Tommy Gamboa submitted a successful EMTS grant request for the purchase of four new Stryker Power Stretchers totaling $120,000 (50% match). These stretchers will be delivered in early 2024 to replace our existing 10-year-old Stryker stretchers. The new equipment will not require any modification to our existing mounting system and minimal staff training prior to being placed in service. 
• The part-time program also benefited from $150,000 of EMTS grant funding in 2023 to support part-time salaries. This grant allowed the department to expand the program to increase available hours and ultimately staffing for Station 272. 

RMS: 

• We transitioned our controlled substance logs away from paper to a cloud-based accountability system, which allows for more accurate tracking and diversion safeguards to protect the department and our providers. 
• The station shift logs were also replaced with a digital form within Image Trend that allowed for greater departmental situational awareness among all Lieutenants and Battalion Chiefs across all shifts.

I want to thank all our EMS providers for continuing to provide exceptional care to our community; we had some challenging calls again last year that were taken in stride. I’m so proud to work with such a skilled, compassionate, and empathetic group of professionals to set the standard of EMS care throughout Elbert County. Thank you, and here’s to 2024!

Photo of Elizabeth Fire apparatus (taken by Ethan Dunlop)