At the close of my 5th year as Fire Chief of Wakulla County, I would like to take a moment to say thank you to the citizens of Wakulla County, the administrative team at the BOCC, and most of all to my staff who have worked so hard toward realizing our vision of a modern, professional Fire Rescue service capable of meeting the demands of a growing community.

 

Since 2016, our EMS call volume has increased nearly 24%, with similar increases in Fire Engine calls. In 2021, we transported 2,800 patients and responded to over 1,100 engine calls including 23 structure fires, 32 wildland fires, and 143 vehicle crashes.

 

As I reflect on these past years, I am so proud of the fine men and women of Wakulla County Fire Rescue. In addition to meeting the challenge posed by the growth in demand for services, they have managed to implement numerous improvements which have revolutionized the department. While the accomplishments of my team are too many to list entirely, I would like to mention a few of the highlights:

 

Our Training Division, led by Battalion Chief Zac Lyons and Captain Taylor Lee, has made great strides in encouraging a culture of continuous education and improvement within the department. They have appointed and trained several Field Training Officers (FTOs) who are distributed across all shifts and who are responsible for orienting new staff and for ongoing education and training. In addition to the FTO program, the Training Division has developed many other innovative training strategies including web‐based learning and in‐house video

production capabilities in order to create our own, customized training courses.

 

Our Logistics Division, led by Battalion Chief Andy Bowman and Captain Nathan Roberts, has made many improvements to our patient care by upgrading to the latest in Advanced Life Support equipment including new airway and CPR devices, and specialty pediatric equipment. They have implemented a digital inventory control system which allows us to avoid waste and errors and improve patient safety. The system includes an electronic drug tracking system with safe storage, and computerized IV pumps to ensure the most accurate and safe administration of

medications.

 

Our Fleet & Facilities Division, led by Battalion Chief Brandon Alyea and Captain Paul Gautier, has worked tirelessly to improve operations and add to our Fire Rescue capabilities. In 2019 they oversaw the relocation to our new Station 1 Headquarters and have made continuous improvements to our response capabilities by strategically managing our fleet of emergency vehicles. They secured grants for the department to purchase a Wilderness Search & Rescue ATV and a Fire Rescue Boat, both equipped with Advanced Life Support equipment. With these enhanced capabilities, the department was able to stand up a Special Operations Team which will train to lead wilderness and water rescue operations, as well as Technical and Rope extrication

and rescue.

 

Our in‐house Administrative Team, consisting of myself, EMS Chief Marvin Walters, and Administrative Coordinator Kelly Graves, have worked diligently to improve office procedures in order to increase efficiency. We have implemented a new, centralized reporting database for all medical and fire reports which allows for robust analytics as well as pre‐fire planning and inspection capabilities. We have seen great success with “growing our own” highly qualified staff by investing in the Wakulla County Fire Cadets program and through tuition assistance and incentive programs for qualified staff to attend Paramedic and Fire school.

 

Lastly, our success would not be possible without the support of the Board of County Commissioners, the County Administrator, and the administrative staff at the BOCC offices. This year, the BOCC conducted a review of the MSBU for fire protection and approved an increase in collections which allowed the department to add a full‐time engine company in Medart and to begin to save toward new facilities and vehicles. Also in 2021, the BOCC approved across‐the board raises for our hardworking and dedicated Fire Rescue personnel.

 

While I am amazed by our progress and truly grateful for the hard work of my team, I am also incredibly excited for the future. We have many plans in store for the next five years that will continue to transform and modernize Fire Rescue services in Wakulla County. Thank you all for your support.

 

Sincerely,

Louis Lamarche

Fire Chief, Public Safety Director