Forty Asheville Fire Department firefighters responded to the scene of a building collapse at 290 Haywood Road in West Asheville at 4:45 p.m. June 17, 2015. Asheville Police and City Development Services Department inspectors assisted with public safety following this incident. No one was in the building and no injuries were reported. The building was formerly occupied [...]
Most people only give fire hydrants a passing glance, but to firefighters, each hydrant has color-coded info to give them quick and critical information, minimizing response time in emergencies. That’s why each hydrant gets a new paint job about every two years, and that’s where the great work of community volunteers comes in. Throughout the year, [...]
This spring, the City of Asheville Fire Department took up a nation-wide challenge to see which of its three battalions, throughout the department’s 12 stations, could make the biggest reduction in energy use over a three-month period. With the results tallied in June, the winner is Battalion 2 with a total energy reduction of [...]
The Asheville Fire Department is proud to announce the promotions of three of its Chief Officers into key leadership positions. Wayne Hamilton and Barry Hendren have each been promoted to the position of Assistant Fire Chief, and Chris Budzinski will now serve as Deputy Fire Chief. “We are very excited about the new leadership team, and anticipate [...]
Exciting news from the Asheville Fire Department: Battalion Chief Joy Ponder has been awarded a scholarship to the Fire Service Executive Development Institute, a year-long program designed to advance the leadership development of firefighters serving at the top of their field. Ponder is a graduate of the four-year National Fire Academy Executive Fire Officer Program [...]
The City of Asheville is proud to announce that two of the organization’s top leadership have been recognized by professional associations as top practitioners in their field. Asheville Fire Department Chief Scott Burnette was awarded Career Fire Chief of the Year by the North Carolina Fire Chiefs Association at a Feb. 8 ceremony. This is the [...]
October is Fire Prevention month, and the week of October 6-13 is a week to focus on fire prevention. The Asheville Fire Department has kicked it off with these tips for preventing kitchen fires: It’s time for Fire Prevention Week, and from October 6-12 the Asheville Fire Department is joining forces with the nonprofit National Fire [...]
Fire engines and police cruisers alike lit up on September 17 at the Murphy-Oakley Community Center and Fire Station Building, but they were not responding to an emergency. The blue and red lights were flashing in celebration of a high-speed communication connection that means better and faster service responses by Asheville’s emergency responders. The City of [...]
In December, 2012, the Asheville Fire Department responded to an auto accident on Lyman Street in which a vehicle wound up upside down in the French Broad River with the driver trapped inside. The team of firefighters that worked the scene would grow to 16 strong, and involved water rescue and dive team personnel, but they [...]
On Friday, August 16, the Carolina Brotherhood, a group of firefighters, police officers and emergency personnel riding 700 miles across North and South Carolina in honor of their fallen comrades, rode into downtown Asheville on their way to their final stop in Boone. The group of bicyclists included Asheville’s own Landon Davis, Dan Flinn, Joe Hallam, [...]
Six city employees were recognized by Asheville City Council at its August 13 meeting. Council thanked for their hard work, drive for improvement, and, in one case, heroism. Darlene Barnwell, who works in the city’s Customer Service Division, received a standing ovation for her heroic rescue of an 8-year-old boy who was being attacked by dogs [...]
The City of Asheville is pleased to announce that Deputy Finance Director Eric Hardy and Asheville Fire Department Public Information Officer Kelley Klope have both been selected to attend the 32nd Leadership Asheville Class beginning in September. Leadership Asheville, operated through UNC Asheville is an important resource to the community, with participants honing leadership and collaborative [...]