Boyceville fire department responds to 48 calls
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
BOYCEVILLE — The Boyceville Community Fire Department has responded to 48 calls so far this year.
The most recent calls were a structure fire, a car accident and mutual aid to the Menomonie fire department, said Josh Pittman, interim fire chief, during his report to the Boyceville Community Fire District Board at the December 11 meeting.
On Thanksgiving there was a power surge and a call about an “odd smell,” but it turned out to be a false alarm, he said.
The lights on Engine 2 have been repaired, Pittman said, adding that he is looking into updating radios for the department.
During a previous meeting, at the request of Karl Hackbarth, representative for the Town of Stanton and chair of the fire board, members of the board had gone out to the fire station bay to look at the lights on the front of the fire engine, which had been damaged several years ago but had never been repaired.
The most recent training for firefighters focused on radio use and procedures, Pittman said.
Part of the training involved checking batteries on the radios to make sure they work, and some were not functioning at all, he said.
The thermal camera also requires new batteries, Pittman noted.
Steve Nielsen, representative for the Town of the Stanton, asked about a fire that had occurred on county Highway O between Boyceville and Knapp.
The fire was in a camper at night, Pittman said.
At the time, it looked like a large fire, but now it does not look like anything much had happened from the road, Nielsen commented.
Candidates
The Boyceville fire board learned that one of the four candidates for the fire chief position could not attend an interview with the board on December 18.
The applicants for fire chief are Donald Heldt, Josh Pittman, Greg Holden and Tim Fasbender (with the envelopes opened in that order at the December 3 meeting).
Lillie Milune, representative for the Village of Wheeler, asked if the fourth candidate would be able to do an interview on December 19.
December 18 works for Mark Renderman, the Altoona fire chief, Hackbarth said.
At a previous meeting, members of the fire board had agreed that asking a fire chief from a department outside of the area would be helpful in conducting the interviews.
Board members would meet at 3:30 p.m. on December 18 to review the interview procedures with the board and Renderman, Hackbarth said, adding that he could check to see if the fourth candidate could meet on December 19.
The interview times are set up from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m., from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., he said.
The plan had been for the fourth candidate to be interviewed from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.
If December 19 works for the fourth candidate, the board could meet afterwards to discuss the applicants, said Brad Stevens, representative for the Village of Boyceville.
It would be nice to have the new fire chief start on January 1, but maybe that is not feasible. The fire department does have an interim fire chief right now, and it would be useful for the new fire chief to have time to plan, too, Hackbarth said.
The Boyceville fire board will plan to stay in closed session after the last interview has been completed to select the new chief, he said.
Letters will be sent out to all candidates after the interviews, Hackbarth said.
If the fourth candidate is not available on December 19, then another meeting date should be set, said Michelle Drury, representative for the Town of Hay River.
The Boyceville Community Fire District Board set another meeting date for December 30 at 6:30 p.m. at the Boyceville fire station.
