Weiser rural fire district has a new chief in charge

Weiser Rural fire department, Tim Atwood
Tim Atwood was approved as the new chief of the Weiser Area Rural Fire Department by the fire board. He replaces Nate Marvin, who retired from the department after decades of service. Photo by Steve Lyon
The Weiser Area Rural Fire Department has a new chief with the appointment of Tim Atwood, a veteran fireman who retired in July as a captain after working for the Nampa Fire Department for 27 years.
Atwood takes over from Nate Marvin, who served as chief for more than 20 years and has been with the department for 40 years. The three-member fire board approved Atwood for the top post.
The job of chief is part-time and is paid a small salary to manage the rural department. The fire department is supported by a tax levy that collects about $245,000 annually to cover expenses. The taxing district goes all the way to Midvale Hill and takes in a good chunk of the county outside of Weiser. The fire district also has a contract to provide fire protection for the Annex Fire District in Oregon. 
There are 25-30 volunteer firemen currently on the department. There are a couple of vacancies on the roster and the recruiting is ongoing. Volunteers must complete a background check and an interview. They also must be available for training two nights a month and three or four weekends a year.
Atwood said keeping the firemen interested in serving with the volunteer department is a big part of his job, along with managing the budget. The firemen get paid a small stipend for their efforts on the department. 
Working as a full-time paid fireman in Nampa was a career. At a rural fire department, where most of the firemen have day jobs, it’s a different situation. 
“It’s a whole different motivation. Here, we need these guys to want to be here. We don’t collect enough tax dollars to pay them enough for everything they do, so that’s part of my job to make them want to be here,” Atwood said.
He also brings to the department a lot of experience and training from his many years as a full-time fireman on the Nampa department. Nampa has two fire entities – a city fire department and a fire protection district that operate together as one fire department through a joint powers agreement. 
When he started with Nampa in 1991, there was one fire station with seven guys on duty. These days, it is a busy department with five fire stations and 10,000 runs a years for fires and accidents.
There is a big difference in the types of fires handled by a rural department versus an urban fire department like Nampa. Out here the firemen handle many more wildland fire calls than a city fire department. 
Prior to working full-time as a fireman in Nampa, he volunteered with the Ontario Fire Department. He was self-employed as a carpernter at the time and a friend suggested he join. He liked the fire service and began gaining more experience covering for city firemen during vacations. He also later volunteered with the Fruitland Fire Department.
Atwood grew up on the Oregon Slope and has always liked the area. When he had the chance to move back to the Weiser area with his wife Donna, who works for Washington County, he took it three years ago. 
He met some guys in the Weiser rural fire department and joined. After talking to Marvin about his pending retirement and what the chief job entailed, he agreed to take the position.
It’s kept him fairly busy so far. There have been fire calls to handle and other management duties. The department is finishing up work on the interior of the new fire building, which was constructed after the old building collapsed under the heavy snow of the winter of 2017.
When it’s completed, there will be a couple of new offices, bathrooms and a storage room for gear. Another project the department is working on is selecting a system to deal with vehicle exhaust in the firehall. There are several systems that remove the exhaust. It tends to collect in the building and needs to be removed.
The department also received a federal grant for $130,000 to buy new breathing apparatus. The current ones used by firemen are nearing the end of their service dates. A committee is looking at what the department wants to buy, Atwood said.
“We’re really busy at the moment,” he said. 
The department sets aside funds annually in the budget for a new vehicle. It’s difficult to accumulate enough money to buy expensive fire equipment with the property taxes collected by the district. It can take a decade or 15 years to get enough saved up.
The department has a satelite fire station in Mann Creek and the fire engine parked there is due for replacement. 
“This fire district is not any different than most. You have difficulty getting there,” Atwood said.
 

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Signal American

18 E. Idaho St.
Weiser, ID 83672
PH: (208) 549-1717
FAX: (208) 549-1718
 

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