New City Fire Chief Settling In To Duties

The gold-plated badge pinned to Dale C. Herman's chest tells only part of the duties that will come with his new job.
The gold badge is given to members of the city Fire Department when they rise to the rank of battalion chief. However, Mr. Herman's badge does not point out his appointment by the City Council last week to the department's chief's position. That badge is still in the mail.
Chief Herman comes from a family of firefighters and, while he could retire today and still collect a state pension, the unpredictability of the job keeps him coming back to the office, 24 years after joining the department as a firefighter trying a new career.
Chief Herman said Tuesday that he is now leading a department where he knows every face in the building. There is, however, still plenty to be learned about leading those 80 other members.
"I walked in Tuesday with a knot in my stomach," Chief Herman said. "If I remember it right, I had the same feeling on my first day as a firefighter, as a captain and as a battalion chief."
The chief's position had been vacant since March 2009, when Chief Daniel J. Gaumont resigned to take a similar position in Keller, Texas. At the time, Deputy Chief Milton M. Sayre was temporarily designated chief and he delayed his planned retirement until April. The chief and deputy chief positions had been vacant since, leaving the on-duty battalion chief to handle administrative duties.
The newly appointed chief said he is happy with the condition of the department. No major equipment needs to be immediately replaced, two cadets are in their fourth week of training and the three-station system - with buildings on Mill, Massey and State streets - provide adequate coverage to the city.
Chief Herman said he does, however, plan to speak with shift commanders soon about tweaking which companies respond when multiple calls are dispatched.
"There is some overlap with responses," he said. "So I want to get their input with the hope we can reduce some response times."
Chief Herman's appointment also will lead to a string of promotions within the department.
The chief's first priority will be to appoint a deputy chief, who schedules vehicle maintenance and employee shifts.
"I'm hoping to fill that position in a timely manner," Chief Herman said. "I'm meeting with the city manager later this week to go over exactly how those steps will go."
Either a battalion chief or captain from within the department will be appointed deputy chief, meaning there may be as many as two battalion chief vacancies. To fill those holes, captains can be promoted to battalion chief and eligible firefighters can be promoted to captain.
Chief Herman made his way to his new post through a series of promotions that began after he entered the city Fire Department as a firefighter in January 1986.
By then, he already had volunteered at the Calcium Fire Department - which later became Northpole Fire Co. - for seven years.
Chief Herman described his parents as lifetime volunteers at the Northpole Fire Co., his father a former chief and his mother a member of the company's auxiliary.
"My father had a monitor with one channel and when a fire call came over, my mother would go to the phone and start calling other members of the department who didn't have monitors," Chief Herman said.
Chief Herman resigned as an officer with the Northpole company after accepting the chief's job with the city. "I just didn't want there to be any conflicts of interest," he said.
Chief Herman said his new job will keep him busy for a few years.
"I have a son who would like to go to college," he said. "I still have all the normal bills that need to be paid."
His son, David, will enter 10th grade next month. Chief Herman also has a stepdaughter, stepson and daughter with his wife, Patricia A.
"I always saw 55 as a benchmark as long as I was still physically able to perform the job," Chief Herman said. "Right now, I'm more worried that sitting at this desk will expand my waist."