Operations Deputy Chief Mike Piper
The Operations Division provides emergency services to the community. The Division is led by the Deputy Chief and is divided into battalions A, B and C. One battalion is on duty each day. Each battalion is led by a Battalion Chief, who reports directly to the Deputy Chief. The Battalion Chiefs supervise the daily operations of members assigned to the Operations Division. In addition to the Deputy Chief and 3 Battalion Chiefs, members assigned to the Operations Division include 8 Captains, 16 Lieutenants, and 93 firefighters. Sixty-three of our 93 firefighters are career firefighters and 30 are volunteer firefighters. Every firefighter is a professional.
An Incident Safety Officer (ISO) normally assigned to the Training Division is available at every hour of every day. An ISO responds to any incident that poses a significant risk of injury or death to a member. No member in the near 100 year history of the organization has sustained a life threatening injury or death in the line of duty. This fact is due in to the culture of safety and competency that exists within the organization.
The Operations Division responds to thousands of 911 calls each year. Most of those responses are emergency medical incidents, motor vehicle accidents and fires.
Our partner in providing emergency medical services is Pridemark Paramedic Services LLC. Pridemark Paramedic Services is a contracted and private non-profit entity that provides advanced life support and hospital transport services to our community.
A typical first alarm response to a residential house fire would include 4 engines (each staffed with 3 or 4 personnel), 1 truck (staffed with 4 personnel), 1 Battalion Chief, 1 Incident Safety Officer, and the Deputy Chief and/or Fire Chief. One of the 4 engines is designated as the Rapid Intervention Team and remains in a state of readiness for a distress call from any member operating at the incident. Large or complex fires involve a response from 6 engines and 2 trucks in addition to the Battalion Chief, Incident Safety Officer and Deputy Chief and/or Fire Chief. In those instances our good neighbors provide staffed engines within the District to maintain the highquality of service that the community we serve deserves and expects.
Special Operations provided by the Division include swift, open and ice water rescue capability; rapid intervention teams; hazardous materials responses; confined space, high angle, and trench rescue response capabilities, as well as wildfire response capabilities. More than a handful of our members are also members of Colorado Task Force 1, a federal urban search and rescue team based out of Colorado. Our urban search and rescue team specialists have responded to several incidents of national significance, including hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, and hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008. Our wildfire team members also provide national response capabilities.
Although the primary responsibility of the Operations Division is to respond to emergency calls for assistance, members of the Division acknowledge and value the importance of preventing injuries and fires. Operations Division members support the mission of the organization daily by completing Fire Code inspections in local businesses, child restraint system (car seat) inspections, and by conducting a wide variety of public education sessions in addition to responding to requests for emergency assistance.
Arvada Fire Emergency Medical Services
The Arvada Fire Department answers all calls for Emergency Medical Services within our response boundaries. We provide the initial response to stabilize the patient prior to the arrival of the ambulance. The standard of care at the AFPD is currently at the Emergency Medical Technician - Basic (EMT-B) level. Many of our firefighters have additional EMS certifications and training for IV therapy, reading EKG’s, and others. Several firefighters are certified at the more advanced levels, including EMT-Intermediate and EMT- Paramedic.
The AFPD provides EMS under the guidance of our Physician Adviser, Dr. Nils Albert, MD. Our base hospital is Exempla Lutheran Medical Center (ELMC) in Wheat Ridge. ELMC also provides monthly Continuing Medical Education (CME) for all AFPD providers. This training is coordinated by Mr. Ron Quaife, NREMT-P.
All front line AFPD apparatus are equipped with the following EMS equipment:
* Oxygen and BLS airway / resuscitation equipment
* Bandaging / Splinting and Irrigating supplies
* Spinal Immobilization equipment
* Obstetrical kit
* Bio-hazard protective gear
AFPD units respond equipped with Automatic external Defibrillators (AED). This system is a portable device that is utilized to analyze the cardiac rhythm of a cardiac arrest victim. The AED then decides if it is appropriate to deliver a coutershock.
The countershock has been found to be an effective treatment to restore normal cardiac function in cases where the normal heart rhythm has deteriorated into an irregular and non-productive state. One of these types of rhythms is called Ventricular Fibrillation. This is where the term “Defibrillator” comes from because it is designed to stop the abnormal fibrillation.
We also carry specialized rescue equipment to deal with vehicle accidents and other situations where a victim is trapped and requires extrication. AFPD firefighters are trained to perform rescue / extrication with many types of state of the art tools. Our complement of tools includes the famous “Jaws of Life”.
The health and welfare of the community is supported in many ways by the AFPD apart from responding to emergencies. Our stations conduct blood pressure check as a public service. We also provide CPR and first aid trainings such as at our citizens academy. AFPD also provides public education programs on safety topics. AFPD firefighters participate in the 9 Health Fair and hold activities for the public for such events as the annual EMS Week.
Quality service is critically important to us. The AFPD has an active EMS Process Improvement Team. This team evaluates the quality of all aspects of our medical service delivery.
