Company/Association News

• ERIC WAGNER was appointed as the new chief of the Lexington Township (OH) Fire Department (LTFD). Wagner is a 19-year member of the LFD and previously served as its captain. He takes over for former chief Ed Johnson, who served the department for 20 years, with 15 of those years as chief. Wagner is also certified as a first responder, hazmat tech, confined space, ice/water rescue, volunteer firefighter, and a basic arson investigator. The LTFD operates with a volunteer roster of 25 members and actively responds to approximately 40 calls per month.

• JODY BUTZ was named the new fire chief for the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, Alberta, Canada, where he was previously the assistant deputy chief for regional emergency services. Butz takes over for former chief Darby Allen, who announced his retirement in December 2016. Butz and Allen were instrumental in the fight against “The Beast” wildfire in May 2016, which led to the largest evacuation in Alberta history (90,000 people) and laid waste to 10 percent of the city. A member of regional emergency services since 2001, Butz has held several positions within the organization. He was also active during the 2013 flooding in Fort McMurray and has worked as a coordinator and instructor for Keyano College’s emergency medical technician program.

company/association news

• THE FIRE DEPARTMENT SAFETY OFFICERS ASSOCIATION (FDSOA) awarded David Dodson with its inaugural “Lifetime Service Award.” Richard Maddox, chairman of the FDSOA board of directors, announced the creation of a “Lifetime Service Award.” Dodson is a 34-year fire service veteran who has served up to the position of battalion chief. In 1997, he was chosen as the ISFSI “George D. Post Fire Instructor of the Year.” His “Art of Reading Smoke” class has been presented to more than 70,000 firefighters in the United States and Canada. He recently completed “The Art of Reading Buildings” (Fire Engineering Books and Videos) with John Mittendorf. www.fdsoa.org.
• TARGETSOLUTIONS was approved to provide fire and emergency medical services departments in the state of New York with 100 percent of their recertification training. Agencies can now complete the New York Department of Health’s required paperwork to request permission for completing 100 percent of their Three-Year EMS Continuing Medical Education Recertification Program through TargetSolutions. The Olean (NY) Fire Department was the first agency to submit the required paperwork, which includes six mandatory questions with detailed answers made available by TargetSolutions. www.targetsolutions.com.