Hello
Durango Herald subscribers, Hal Doughty here - the new Fire Chief at Durango
Fire Rescue. In cooperation with the
Durango Herald, we are excited to have the opportunity to communicate with you with
a new column about your Fire and EMS system, and timely seasonal messages about
fire safety, injury and illness prevention, and other useful topics.
Durango Fire
Rescue provides fire suppression, emergency medical response and transport,
rescue services, and hazardous material response across approximately 325
square miles of La Plata County, Colorado.
Our response district runs 58 miles along the US 550 corridor from the
New Mexico state line north into San Juan County, Colorado, near the peak of
Coal Bank Pass. Our western boundary is
just beyond the Durango West subdivision heading toward Hesperus on Highway 160
west, and our eastern border is in the Florida River Valley just east of the
river along Highway 160 east.
In 2015,
Durango Fire Rescue responded to 4831 calls including a vast array of medical
emergencies, structure fires, vehicle accidents, water rescues, hazardous
materials spills, automatic fire alarms, wildland fires, and technical rescues
and searches. Our organization provides
these services through the work of 160 dedicated members, comprised of
volunteer firefighters and medics, full-time firefighters and medics, part time
and contractual employees, and an administrative staff; all who are focused on
providing the quickest, most effective, and best service for our community.
In addition
to emergency call response, our fire prevention bureau provides many services
for the community. Our members interact
with thousands of La Plata County citizens from the very young to the elderly, and
everyone in between through programs and services such as: code enforcement,
inspections, plan reviews for construction, fire alarm and fire suppression
system inspections, burn permits, and community education and fire prevention. Our goals are simple: provide high quality public safety and
community service, to improve the quality of life in our community and help
make it a safer place to live.
In my
position as the Fire Chief, I am one of the most fortunate people in the
world. You see, I get to work each day
with a group of the most dedicated and committed people I have ever been
exposed too. 160 individuals, many of
whom don’t even get paid, who believe what you do: that living in our community
should be enjoyable, and that if something bad happens there should be people
who will come and help, no matter what.
Our members work incredibly hard to do just that. They commit countless hours to being ready to
answer the next call for help. Our motto
is “One Community, One Family, One Department”.
Durango Fire
Rescue is here to help, no matter what your need is. We look forward to sharing more about our
organization in the future. Until then,
we wish you health and safety.
Hal Doughty
Fire Chief – Durango Fire Rescue
Printed in the Durango Herald - 2/14/16
