Staff Reports

Calls for Service Analysis

• General 

  • Our main focus right now is to complete the entry door trim pieces to enhance our station security.
  • We are now working on getting bids for the few 2025 capital facility improvements we are managing. Mostly cosmetic and landscape projects are in store.

Apparatus

• I am on Ebert County’s RMS system community core. We are receiving assignments in the program and looks like it has streamlined our process. In fact, we are now receiving all solar installations with energy storage. We have started a plan review document and inspection form for these installations. 
• A few of the new subdivisions that we have been talking about are starting to pick up again. 
  • I met with the subdivision down south and, while there are some changes to the number of lots, they are still committed to property for a fire station and a water cistern. They will be going to Elbert County to start up the subdivision again. 
  • Longview Estates would like to move forward to annex into our District. They will be talking to Kiowa about the exclusion and to resurface those files that Legal sent over to start the process. 
• We received our first check from our agreement with Independence. We have had a fair number of calls into that subdivision recently and Station 272 has helped with that response. 
• We will be migrating our emails off of the GoDaddy platform and going straight to Microsoft. We should not have a disruption of services, but we may have different login credentials when the migration is complete. This is the first step in 3 phases to move all our IT needs to Microsoft for management. 
• The GIS department with Elbert County worked with Douglas County to heat map our call data. This will be a great tool to help with future station and apparatus planning.

Photo of GIS Map showing call data

• We are very excited about being awarded a $575,000 matching grant for the Forest Restoration and Wildfire Risk Mitigation Grant through the Colorado State Forest Service. Since we have announced that, we have had additional interest from homeowners within our District. We have 3 years to utilize the monies, and we will be kicking things off in the next few months. 
• Frontier High School is the last school to finish their annual fire inspection. As soon as that is completed, we will notify the State that those inspections are completed. 
• I have started working on 2025 Annual Business Inspections, and they should be assigned by the end of this month.

Fire and Life Safety Education (Erin Loeks)

Photo of Pre-Application Meetings

In February, our term investment with the Colorado Statewide Investment Program (CSIP) came due. We received $11,743.44 for the 3 months. I reinvested this $1M at a rate of 4.46 for 6 months. 

Contracts have been signed and apparatus ordered for a medic, BC vehicle, Type 3, and Type 1 engine. Most of these trucks will arrive at the beginning of 2026. 

Everyone was asked to fill out a self-evaluation in the month of February. This evaluation will be given to their supervisor and will be used to help complete their annual evaluation that will be completed by the end of March. We hope this evaluation helps our employees reflect on their performance and use it to set new goals with the help of their supervisor.

• The purchase order has been issued to Front Range Fire Apparatus for the new Type 1 structural engine. The truck is committed to us, but the actual order will be made in the first week of April when that truck goes into production with Pierce. 
• We are working out some final specifications on the Type 3, and that PO will be issued as soon as we have those changes finalized. I expect those to be completed in the first week of March. 
• This month, we will begin PMs on all of the medics as fleet has room for them to come in. 
• The new quadrant in the far southwest corner of the district has been completed in CAD. Our typical response to that area would be approximately 20 minutes, so I have created new station orders for this quadrant so that Franktown Fire is first due to these 5 properties. Franktown’s response will typically be about 10 minutes quicker to the area, saving a large amount of time for those residents. These changes will be finalized on the next CAD update. 
• A new SOP on Natural Gas and Propane Emergencies has been completed, distributed to the crews, and added to the file center. 
• I have been working with a number of contractors to receive bids on removing the existing insulation in the bays at Station 271 and replacing with spray foam. With the various leaks, repairs, and changes to the bay roof over the years, there are a number of holes and failing sections of the current insulation. This project should significantly help clean up the ceiling and reduce energy costs, noise, etc.

• The 2025 academy has started. We started with six recruits but were able to add two at the last minute. We are starting with Haz-Mat and are approaching it a little differently this year in hopes of having better success with the written exam. 
• Our academy will have 2-3 joint training sessions with Rattlesnake's academy. Rattlesnake has a handful of Kiowa recruits in their academy this year, so all three agencies will be training together. These sessions will be at the training center and will involve live fire. I'll be working with the BCs and Station 273 Lieutenants to attempt to organize joint live fire shift trainings in the fall with Rattlesnake and Kiowa. 
• Chief Steck has requested that we focus on hydration and rhabdo prevention. As a start, STO Navarro was able to secure us a significant discount on hydration powder. We will be requiring the use of electrolytes and overall hydration during the academy and any time we are in operations that have potential to lead to heat/stress related illness. 
• Our members continue to take advantage of outside trainings. A handful of people attended a lithium-ion battery class, Firefighter Coors is attending a SEAT Operations class, STO Sheikh is attending a Haz-Mat Technician class, and Lt. Tyler and Chief Mackall are attending NFA, to name a few. 
• Brittney Dillman will be meeting with each shift to provide proper stretching techniques. Hopefully, this will help alleviate some preventable work-related injuries. 
• Lt. Neisen has been working with all three shifts to get Station 272 equipment and supplies that they need. We recently purchased a stair-step machine, as well as some household items. They should be really close to having aging items replaced. 
• Chief G and I are meeting with Elizabeth PD next week to discuss the possibility of putting on a joint student academy. The academy would have EHS students who are interested in LE or Fire, and we'd put our resources together to provide them with a basic 1-week academy. Our portion would involve them visiting the Capital and our DC Dispatch center. They would also be trained to the Firefighter Light program. This program teaches very basic skills such as PPE/SCBA, hose deployment, and safety. Hopefully we will get some interested high school students that can start their fire career early and come out of this academy as firefighters with defensive operation skills.

Photos of crews training with tech rescue equipment

• The new Medix ambulance was ordered with an expected delivery in 12-14 months. Funding for this ambulance was supported by the 2025 EMTS Grant. 
• We have signed the contract to add First-In station alerting to all stations. This upgrade will increase our turnout times with earlier notification, and significantly benefit the health and safety of our responders by providing unit specific alerts during nighttime hours. 
• Parker Hospital has started their ER remodel project that will be ongoing for the next 10-12 months. There will be no decrease in service provided by the hospital, only some redirection for our ambulances to access the ED during construction. 
• Lt. Regan, Lt. Neisen, ETO Gamboa, and Paramedic Dressel have submitted the 2026 EMTS grant request for funding towards the purchase of three Stryker Auto-Load systems. The fourth will be supplied with the new ambulance build. They will participate in the upcoming State and Regional review processes in the coming months. Thank you to you all for getting that put together! 
• Our new part-timers have started working shifts and progressing in their new roles to help keep Station 272 open every day. 
• A new EMS kit was ordered for E272 to be consistent with our other units; thanks Shane for the suggestion and getting that handled.

EMS Calls (excluding "no patient"):

Shout out to STO Navarro for getting water bottles and goody bags donated for our academy. He also secured us a 30% discount on electrolyte powder to combat dehydration and rhabdo.

Photos of crews training

This year, our new year's resolution is to help our community get to know us better! We’ve introduced a new item to our social media accounts, titled “Firefighter Friday,” where, every Friday, we introduce another member of our staff to our community. This has been very well received by the members of our District. Below are the Firefighter Friday highlights for the month of February.

This month, we highlighted Paramedic-Firefighter Robbie Fairfield, Shift Training Officer and Firefighter EMT Wes McClain, Firefighter EMT Brittany McGhee, and Part-Time Paramedic-Firefighter Reggie Hyatt!