Hualapai Valley Fire Department
Fire District Status
North Kingman, AZ: The Hualapai Valley Fire Department (HVFD) has served residents, property owners, businesses, and visitors to the Fire District since 1964. Unfortunately, over the years, turmoil has been a fact of life in the District. Recently, a new level of turmoil has erupted, fueled by individuals and organizations seeking to keep the Fire District from growing enough to provide protection for those who pay for these services. HVFD would like to take this opportunity to respond to the many unfounded allegations that have been made in the past few months against the HVFD Board of Directors, the Fire Chief and the operations of HVFD.
Grant Funds: The Hualapai Valley Fire Department has worked hard during the last three years to secure grant funding for not only itself, but also for the neighboring rural fire districts of Valle Vista, Truxton, Lake Mohave Ranchos, Chloride and Seligman. These grants were written by the HVFD Fire Chief in his “off duty” or standby time when he was covering the fire district nights and weekends for emergency response as Duty Chief. HVFD has received to date over one million dollars in grant funds, while the other departments will realize close to $500,000 in grant funds that they would not have received otherwise. With Truxton’s budget at approximately $15,000 per year, the approximate $100,000 in grant funds that they have or will receive makes a major positive impact on their communities’ fire and emergency services.
The Fire Chief has been asked, “Why are you writing grants for these departments, and what do you receive in return?” Neither HVFD nor it’s Fire Chief receive any compensation for writing these grants, or assisting with grant projects. The reward lies in knowing that these communities, as well as Mohave County generally, are receiving a higher level of fire protection because of the grant money they have and will receive.
The Kingman Unified School District: Recently, the Hualapai Valley Fire Chief and department were accused of extorting fire hose and requiring unnecessary fire hydrants at a local school. The fire district is accused of enforcing fire codes too strictly, and the accusers place the blame on the current Fire Chief, who was hired in 2003. Yet, an internal document review of fire district files showed that the fire district and school district have been at odds since prior to 2001, when school officials attempted to block HVFD personnel from accessing school grounds to do their inspections. In addition, school employees have ceased calling 911 for medical emergencies, as they do not wish to have fire personnel at school facilities.
In fact, on January 16, 2007 a student apparently broke her leg on School District property. She was not treated by school officials, and was put on a bus, sent back to her home, and forced to walk down the street. The parents filed a complaint with the Fire Department asking why we did not respond, yet we were never called by school personnel. Does this sound like someone who cares for the safety of a child?
Three times prior to the new Fire Chief’s employment in 2003 with the HVFD, three different fire chiefs have required the KUSD to install new fire hydrants when they expanded school facilities. When the new additions were added in 2006 the KUSD knew, or should have known, that the fire code would require a fire hydrant that would cover the new additions and protect the 350 or more students using the new facilities.
At HVFD, our goal, and duty, is to enforce fire codes, which have been developed, based on actual life and property loss worldwide, by organizations determined to reduce the loss of life and property.
Were additional hydrants needed? Yes.
When the school district asked for an alternative to withhold installation of hydrants back until next summer, was it given? Yes, an “alternative method” as outlined by the Uniform Fire Code was offered and accepted by the school district. (1997 UFC Section 103)
After the fact, the School Board, acting on advice from individuals who were not qualified, informed and/or who did not know everything involved in the fire protection decision, changed their stance, and, without further appeals or any notice to the HVFD Board, of their change of opinion, claimed extortion through the newspaper.
This is difficult to accept, as the School Board never followed the plan review requirements for the fire district, or Mohave County. If they had followed some simple legal guidelines, we would not be here today. Those guidelines have been established to save lives and this area has seen what happens when people feel they do not need to be permitted properly because their positions in this community allow them to sidestep the law. Unfortunately, once again the community is forced to work with people who think they are exempt from regulations.
Where is the fire hose the School District purchased? It is on three fire apparatus, as discussed with the School District and confirmed by our Board of Directors and fire mechanics.
It also appears that some misinformation, as well as altered documents, were illegally released for publication by individuals seeking to discredit this organization. As the School District has a negative history with HVFD, and is non-cooperative in many facets of our relationship, they took the misinformation as fact. An investigation has been completed, and information is being forwarded to the appropriate parties.
The Kingman Airport Authority, Inc.: KAAI is not a department of the City of Kingman, but an Arizona Corporation that manages the airport for Kingman, and it has been in a running battle with HVFD for some time. Why? KAAI believes that they should receive all Federally mandated services for free from HVFD, while our taxpayers pick up the tab. Taking into account the hundreds of man-hours required to maintain an airport fire department, HVFD asked for an agreement in which costs were shared by KAAI and HVFD. Though other fire districts throughout the state receive direct costs from airports that require the special Federally mandated coverage and give consideration to the fact that they do not pay taxes to the District, KAAI refused to give HVFD any funding for any type of service. The result was that HVFD was financially forced to reduce the daily services being provided by HVFD to KAAI. The Arizona Revised Statutes A.R.S. § 48-805 permits the District to enter into Intergovernmental Agreements with other political subdivisions for technical or administrative services or to provide fire services to the property owned by the political subdivision.
No normal business would allow one person to pay while a second customer does not. HVFD will cover the airport and hangars in an emergency, but the requirement to standby during the multiple daily commercial flights, moving HVFD vehicles, equipment and firefighters for free, when KAAI has received huge Federal and State grants for the express purpose of providing that coverage, is not fair to HVFD taxpayers.
HVFD submitted an Intergovernmental Agreement stating that fees would be paid by KAAI when HVFD’s equipment and firefighters were in use by KAAI. KAAI has refused to respond or negotiate an agreement. KAAI received over $1 million in grants last year. Why should a managing corporation be subsidized by taxpayers?
The Professional Firefighters Association: In November 2002, the PFFA approached HVFD and advised that they were forming an “association”. The Board of Directors at the time advised them to return to discuss contracts, etc. However, no member of PFFA ever returned to address the Board or Fire Chief, until November 2006 when they began making accusations against the Fire Chief and the Board of Directors on the radio and in the newspaper, and diligently attempted to block the merger with Valle Vista Fire District. Since no member of PFFA ever returned, no labor agreement was ever signed with the HVFD, and as such, the PFFA has no collective bargaining, meet and confer, or ANY other type of agreement with HVFD. Is this the fault of HVFD? Or is it just a lack of information on the part of the association?
Employee Turnover: Ask many City Firefighters where they started their careers, where they were trained or where they worked just prior to their job at KFD and many will answer that they started at HVFD.
Why did they leave? For many I have spoken with they left HVFD for the money. Entry- level city personnel receive a higher wage than their fire district counterparts. Leaving is human nature; people want to make more money. Did they leave because of a Fire Chief? No, they left for more money.
Everyone that leaves HVFD is told, “Do what is best for your family”. Ironically however, these same individuals do not use HVFD for a reference. I have yet to be called by the City to confirm employment on any individual that went to the City.
Do employees get fired? Yes, everywhere. HVFD has a set of rules, adopted by the Board of Directors, and each employee is held accountable. Over the years, prior to the “new” Fire Chief arriving in 2003, the turnover for terminations and resignations per capita is about the same as it is today. Considering that we have more employees than we did in 2002, it seems our “statistics” are running even. If you do not do your job, pass your training, and violate rules, you will be held accountable. All new employees are hired on a 12-month probationary basis, and promoted employees have a similar probation. If you do not meet the probationary requirements, or the needs of the department, you are held accountable for your actions or inactions. The department does not tolerate insubordination, falsifying documents, personal use of District equipment, illegal release of information, harassment, hostile work environment, or any other inappropriate acts that may adversely reflect on the ethics, morals, or professionalism of the District by the taxpayers or general public." Does your employer tolerate such acts?
Do all HVFD personnel hate the Chief and the Board of Directors? Far from it. Most employees stand by the decisions made by the Chief and the Board, and are here to continue serving. They refuse to be brought down by the minority of those who would see the District fail, and they understand and adhere to the department rules and regulations.
Fire Code Enforcement: HVFD currently enforces the 1997 Uniform Fire Code (UFC) adopted by the Board of Directors in 1997. The Fire Chief is charged with the responsibility to enforce this and all supplemental codes. For the most part, this is a straight-forward process; however, some individuals resent code enforcement, just as they resent getting a speeding ticket. Is it the police officer’s fault that you were cited? Is it the Fire Chief’s fault that you are required to install smoke detectors or sprinklers to keep your property safe? It is the Fire Chief’s job and responsibility to enforce the fire code; otherwise he is derelict in his duties.
Improvements to fire services: Since 2003, HVFD has added nine (9) full time personnel to staff two additional companies. We averaged 10 personnel per structure fire in 2006 as opposed to five per structure fire in 2002. We have increased salaries of personnel approximately 19% in the last three years, and improved personnel benefits. In addition, we have opened a new fire station through donations, grants, and other funding, without additional cost to taxpayers, and upgraded our apparatus fleet. We have NOT raised our fire tax through all of these accomplishments. The highest fire tax allowed by law is $3.00 per thousand. District taxes have dropped from $2.95 in 2006 to $2.92 in 2007, and we will work hard to try and lower it even more. Our goal is to have a tax rate no higher than $2.95.
Some argue that they do not like how we staff our fire engines with two people, as a neighboring department staffs with three or four personnel per engine. We are a small fire district, trying to get the most out of the limited tax dollars we have, while upgrading our service into areas that previously had no service. By reducing our Insurance Services Office (ISO) rating from a Class 5/9 to a Class 3, we have been able to reduce insurance premiums for many taxpayers. An informal survey of six property owners showed an average savings of $500 per year per household, multiplied by six equals $3,000 per year in one neighborhood. Multiply this savings District-wide and the numbers are incredible. For those who believe an ISO rating means nothing, open your eyes and do the math. Different insurance companies have different criteria…some are based on the ISO code, some are based on your distance from a fire hydrant, etc., so check with your company, then compare your insurance rates.
Did the Fire Chief undergo a background investigation? Yes. In fact, a background committee, made up of Directors, the City Fire Chief, and the Arizona State Fire Marshal reviewed the Fire Chief applications, qualifications AND contacted former employers. They found the Fire Chief was NOT fired from Twenty Nine Palms or Rio Hondo College; that he left Riverside County FD voluntarily after 20 years service as a Volunteer Fire Officer, and his employment with a defense contractor and the Federal government is still considered classified. Information released from these employers is impossible to receive as any personnel files were sealed due to the projects involved and National Security. All previous employers gave positive or neutral recommendations, and no terminations, as were published, due to sexual harassment were found. In November 2006, several past co-workers of the Chief provided additional insight to the Board of Directors, and dispelled many of the false accusations that had been made.
The Valle Vista Merger: In December 2005, the Valle Vista Fire Chief approached the Hualapai Valley Fire Chief regarding a possible merger. After 12-months of diligent work by both Fire Chiefs and Boards, this merger came to fruition in December 2006. This effort was an extremely legal process, with the Mohave County Attorney guiding both fire districts through the process, twice. In June 2006, the Arizona Revised Statutes changed, and even though everything was complete in June, the County Attorney recommended that the merger be re-done to conform to the new laws. While many spoke out at the public hearings, very few property owners who actually live in and are protected by either district opposed the merger. The merger is complete, and we now have the first successfully merged fire district in Mohave County. For all of the individuals that worked so diligently, thank you.
The Annexations: The “old” Hualapai Valley Fire District grew approximately nine (9) square miles in the last three years. This growth was because of annexation requests, primarily due to three factors: 1) recent Mohave County requirements regarding sub-division development. The County Board of Supervisors required new sub-divisions to have fire protection prior to approval; 2) insurance companies began canceling policy holders outside of district boundaries; and 3) a questionable annexation by the City of Kingman in 2002 that split the Fire District into two parts required the District to piece itself back together through additional annexations, as the District is required by law to be contiguous. Will annexations stop? Probably not anytime soon, because developers continue to move northward in Mohave County. This was another reason for the merger. As growth between the two fire districts continues to occur, it will be easier, and less costly to taxpayers, for a larger district to react to this growth.
My Property Burned!: One local individual that frequently speaks against HVFD will tell anyone who will listen that his property burned down because of the HVFD. He fails to note that an HVFD firefighter rescued his wife, that HVFD was on scene within three minutes, and that HVFD actually saved his house, trees, and outbuildings from the fire. The fire was accidental, and not a deliberate act. This incident was indeed unfortunate, but as with many of these issues, all of the facts have not been released.
The Lawsuit: The Hualapai Valley Fire District has been advised of a lawsuit against the District, the Fire Chief, and Board of Directors. Attorneys and insurance companies have been made aware, and a defense will be prepared. In today’s society, lawsuits are a common tool, and the fire district will overcome this, as it has all other adversities in its past.
Why has HVFD only now responded to these allegations? We have not responded until now because we have been conducting our own internal investigations into these allegations to avoid misstating facts. Our investigations have revealed some surprising, and disappointing, facts. Those revelations have led to some responses that we would rather have avoided, but that we felt necessary to maintain an efficient and professional District to serve the people who depend on us for their safety.
Personally:
Our goal is to serve our taxpayers through both preventative and active measures by giving them the best fire protection our income can purchase and through properly trained, committed and professional firefighters. I hope that this information proves useful to our community. I have a high level of morals and ethics, and I will fight to protect Hualapai Valley Fire District from those that try to oppress it. I will NOT resign my position as Fire Chief, because in my heart, I know I am doing my job. I back my Board of Directors as they in turn back me, entrusting in me the decision-making ability to run a complex organization in an equally complex community. Our district will continue to grow, to provide service to our taxpayers, who are our number one customers. Eventually those that now attack us will be replaced by a new group, yet we will continue to overcome our obstacles in the interest of public safety.
Wayne L. Eder
Fire Chief