Fire official answers Chamber questions

More than 20 business owners and residents came out to join Interim Fire Chief Jeff LaTendresse and City Manager Chris Mann to discuss the EMS program along with other important topics relating to the new City of Canyon Lake Fire Department that will be launching on Jan. 1.

The Coffee with the Fire Chief event was put on by the Canyon Lake Chamber of Commerce at the Canyon Lake Country Club last week.

The purpose of the event was to allow the Interim Chief to share what has been done and what will continue to be done as the community draws closer to having its own fire department and how it will impact the business community in regards to fire prevention.

“If you talk to people within the fire service, they will say that fire prevention is where the focus should be,” Jeff said. “We should be working on preventing fires before they start. The more we can do to be preventative, the farther ahead the businesses and residents will be.”

The hiring process for the department is set to be complete by the end of November, Jeff said. This will put the staff in place an entire month early to start training on procedures, equipment, as well as getting to know each other and the community a little bit better before the department goes live.

There was a question and answer period of time set aside after the Interim Chief and City Manager finished their opening remarks, which allowed for them to answer concerns and address things with the local business owners and residents in attendance.