City Fire Department buys more vehicles

Two Fire Department Command Vehicles were approved for purchase by the City Council recently upon the recommendation of Interim Fire Chief Jeff LaTendresse

These vehicles will be used by the Fire Chief and the Battalion Chief, who will share the “Duty Coverage,” ensuring that a Chief Officer is available around the clock to serve as the Incident Commander on major emergencies as they occur within the city.

The Command Vehicles will be 2021 Dodge Durangos with all-wheel drive, upgraded tires and a two-inch lift to ensure they will be able to meet the varied needs of the new City of Canyon Lake Fire Department.

Jeff also updated the City Council at its April meeting on the progress he is making with setting up the new fire department.

He said a major focus has been establishing the department’s start-up and ongoing operations budgets. He has been working with the city manager and the city’s finance director to establish salaries for all fire department personnel, to determine the benefits package, to identify the work schedule and to create job descriptions and announcements. In addition, costs such as materials, fuel, utilities and other basic expenses are being calculated to ensure the most accurate budget possible, he said.

The cost of agreements with potential vendors have also been established. Jeff has spent considerable time meeting and building relationships with colleagues from several local fire departments, the Office of Emergency Services, the Insurance Service Office, potential vendors and interested members of the community. The chief and City Manager Chris Mann visited three of the four residences that experienced garage fires during the month of March within the city. In reviewing the fire incident statistics for the city, both the chief and city manager agreed these garage fires were rare occurrences. Information provided to the city by the county, which responded to the fires, indicated that two of these fires were caused by golf cart charging issues.