RFD Fire Chief Thomas Dean officially retired today, Friday April 26. Chief Dean has served as our department's chief since 2011 and during his eight-year tenure, he has brought immense change to our growing department. When he took the helm in 2011, Riverview was still entrenched in a depressed, murky economy. The Fire District had outdated apparatus and equipment, dilapidated fire stations, lacked effective station coverage for a growing community, and faced poor morale from firefighters. Chief Dean worked tirelessly with city leaders and the community to implement major changes to the Fire District. Several of his major accomplishments are listed below:
- A Fire Station Improvement Plan was passed allowing four fire stations to be rebuilt and many more renovated.
- The entire apparatus fleet was overhauled, allowing for new apparatus and vehicles to be ordered. This greatly improved the reliability of our units, standardized our apparatus, lessened the cost of maintenance work, and provided enhanced technology to our firefighters.
- Minimum staffing was increased on fire engines and ladder trucks from two to three firefighters.
- Enhanced EMS operations with the addition of five medic units (Medics 6, 7, 13, and 14, 16), the creation of two 24/7 EMS shift captains, and implementation of several ALS engines and quints
- Chief Dean's proudest accomplishment was the opening of three additional fire stations (Stations 13, 14, and 15) which have greatly improved services and response times to rapidly developing areas of Riverview.
While Chief Dean will be greatly missed in the Fire District, we are so thankful for his hard work, tireless effort, and determination to improve the department for firefighters, administrative personnel, and ultimately, the citizens of Riverview. Congratulations and enjoy your retirement Chief Dean!
As the search begins for the next Fire Chief, current Assistant Chief Michael McKeeman will serve as interim Fire Chief.
1/7/19
The brand new Station 10 officially opened for service on January 2nd! The new station replaces the old Station 10 that was built in 1973. The new station is two-stories and can house up to eight firefighters at a time. The station, built with three drive-thru bays, will house Engine 10 and Medic 10. It will also house the crew of Quint 15 until their new station can be completed in December of 2019. The new fire house will serve the Waldemere Park neighborhood well for many years to come. An official ribbon-cutting ceremony will be performed on Monday, January 7th at 9 A.M. Members of the public are welcome to attend and tour the new facility at the ceremony's end.
9/12/18
Riverview Fire District will be teaming up with Brickton Beach Fire to send personnel to North Carolina for preparation and rescue efforts due to Hurricane Florence. A total of eight personnel from our department will respond with one Engine, one special operations Rescue, and a Battalion Chief. Brickton Beach is also sending one Engine and a Battalion Chief. Our personnel will assist in citizen evacuation, help in shelter preparation, and aid in search and rescue efforts once the storm has passed.
5/10/18
Today we learned the proposal for the addition of Fire Station 15 has officially been approved by the city commission. This is fantastic news for our department and the community. Fire Station 15 will be located off Academy Rd and will protect the rapidly developing Prairie Ranch community. This area is currently served by Station 10 and Station 13. We've seen remarkable growth in this up-and-coming area of Riverview and it only stands to get bigger. The city commission has already planned for a new elementary school to service the community and new residential and commercial properties will continue to pop up in the area. With the opening of Station 15, we will be able to get in front of this rapid growth and be able to provide faster response and services than we currently provide now. Station 15 is slated to open in January of 2019 in a temporary facility, until a permanent station can be constructed in the near future. It will house an advanced life support (ALS) fire apparatus with three personnel. The department plans to add ambulance service soon after. Further updates will follow!
1/24/17
The construction on the new Station 14 has been completed and fire personnel will officially move in Friday, January 26th! Station 14 was a supplemental station added to our department in January, 2017 and has been operating out of a temporary facility while construction was completed. The new station is located at 1416 Amoro Pkwy just north of the Forest Acres development. It will staff an engine, a medic unit, and a brush truck. Station 14 features three drive-thru bays for apparatus, six private bunk rooms for personnel, a personal office and bunk room for the station officer, a lounge room, fitness room, and a full-sized kitchen. Station 14 also will have a small classroom to be used for training purposes, as well as for education courses for the public. An official opening ceremony will occur on Monday, January 29th.
11/30/17
Construction on the new Station 10 is slated to begin Monday, December 18. Plans include the demolition of the old station and rebuilding a two-story facility on the property. The current Station 10 was built in 1973, and is not up to current building standards. The new station will be a two-story, hurricane-resistant structure with much more room for apparatus and personnel. It will be an eco-friendly station, featuring solar panels and many other "green" features. Construction on the new station will last a little over a year, with a projected opening in January, 2019. The completion of the new Station 10 will mark the final stage of our Station Improvement Levy that was passed in 2011, in effort to improve our department's facilities. While being rebuilt, Station 10 units will relocate to a temporary facility off Green Hill Rd.
11/16/16
The brand new Station 6 officially opened for service on Wednesday, 11/16. The new station replaces a much older station that was built in 1962. The new Station 6 is a significant upgrade over the older station, with an improved station layout, more space, and new amenities. The LEED station can house up to 8 firefighters at a time, and features private bunk rooms, a fitness room, and a training room. The station has two drive-thru bays to accommodate a new ambulance, known as Medic 6. The new medic unit will decrease response times in the Ramos Square district, and also respond to other nearby areas such as Seagull Key and Crest Falls. An official ribbon-cutting ceremony will be performed on Monday, 11/21 at 9 A.M. Members of the public are welcome to attend to tour the new fire station, and meet the firefighters who will call this new station home.
10/6/16
The Riverview Fire District has deployed three firefighters to Lakeland, Fl to assist with a possible recovery due to Hurricane Matthew. This is apart of a Florida Firefighter's Association regional strike team that deploys help from fire departments across the state. The three-man crew consists of Lt. Collin Lederman, FireMedic Stephen Townsend, and Firefighter/EMT Matt Marshall. The crew will take a reserve fire engine to Lakeland, where they will stage with other fire agencies. From there, they can be deployed to cities across Florida requiring assistance due to damage from Hurricane Matthew. Riverview is also prepared to send additional resources and personnel to help if necessary.
1/1/16
We hope everyone had a wonderful and safe holiday and New Year. 2015 was a busy year for the Riverview Fire District, as we ran over 44,000 calls. This represented a 7% increase from last year's call volume. In 2016, we will be implementing several positive changes to the department that will benefit our response times, and provide better service and protection to the population of Riverview.
Our first initiative is to make two current BLS engines into ALS engines. Those engines will be Engine 2 and Engine 10. ALS engines staff two firefighter/paramedics, and carry advanced life support equipment. Having more ALS engines is vital, as our fire engines are often the closest to an emergency. This means patients suffering from medical maladies will receive quicker and more advanced care. The addition of the two ALS engines will bring our ALS engine total to five, as Engine 3, Quint 6, and Engine 9 are currently ALS capable. Another positive addition will be the introduction of a new medic unit into our fleet, Medic 6. Medic 6 will be placed at Station 6, which currently houses only an ALS engine. The new medic unit will be an ALS ambulance, that will provide coverage to the Ramos Square district. It also will respond to other surrounding areas such as downtown Riverview, Seagull Key, and Waldemere Park. Medic 6 is currently slated to go in service in July, 2016.
11/6/15
The ground-breaking ceremony for the new Fire Station #6 will be held Monday, November 9 at 10 A.M. at 3240 Ronaldo Dr. Construction will begin later this week, and is expected to last one year. The estimated completion date is late November, 2016. Station #6 will be an LEED facility, capable of housing 8 firefighters at a time. The new station will be an upgrade over the much smaller station, which was built in 1962. The station will be expanded to also house a newly designated Medic unit, to decrease EMS response times in the Ramos Square area, as well as other nearby response areas. Currently, Station 6 only houses a fire engine. Because the new station will be built on undeveloped land two blocks away from the current station, current fire service will not be interrupted.
10/4/15
The annual Riverview Fire District Open House will be held this Saturday, October 10 from 10 A.M. until 2 P.M. The event will be held at Fire Station #12, located at 4560 Mitchell Ave. This yearly event is held in conjunction with October Fire Prevention Month. The open house will feature many different types of emergency vehicles, including fire trucks, medic units, police cars, and a medical helicopter appearance. While attending the event, your family can tour Fire Station #12, watch special fire department training demonstrations, and gain extremely valuable information on fire prevention and fire safety. We hope to see everyone there!
9/12/15
After a full year of construction, the rebuild of Station 4 has been completed. Crews will begin moving in on Monday, Sept. 14, and expect the station to be active by Wednesday, Sept. 16th. The new station is an upgrade over the older and smaller station that was built in 1945. The new Station 4 has three drive-thru bays to accommodate larger apparatus, a full-sized kitchen, six private bunk rooms, quarters for both officers and firefighters, and a training room. The official opening of Station 4 will be Saturday, Sept. 19. Festivities will include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, opening remarks from the Mayor of Riverview, and a public-viewing of the station. Families are welcome to attend, as the station and fire apparatus will be on full display. Refreshments will be provided. The old station will remain under the Fire District's ownership until future plans can be decided for the property.
1/3/15
It was a very busy year for the Riverview Fire District. We ran over 42,000 calls, which was a 12% increase from last year. After each year, we always award the busiest engine and medic company with a trophy for each unit to display in their station. The busiest engine company for 2014 was Engine 8, who ran over 2300 calls. The race for the busiest medic unit was a close one, with Medic 5 narrowly defeating Medic 8 by 13 calls. Medic 5 responded to 3108 calls in the past year. Congratulations to Engine 8 and Medic 5 on being the busiest units in the department!
7/27/14
Fire Station 4 is the next station to receive a rebuild. The original station was built in 1945, and has been in need of a rebuild for some time. The new station will be located near the original station, off of Clairmont Ave. The new station will be a LEED-energy certified station. It is expected to be completed in August of 2015. Because the station will be constructed on a separate property, crews will remain in the current station until completion.
7/30/13
Our brand new Pierce Velocity Heavy Duty Rescue was placed into service on Monday, July 29th. It will serve as Heavy Rescue 3 out of Station 3 on Winston Road. Crews assigned to the rig christened it by pushing the rescue into the station. This is a popular tradition in the fire service. The new rescue received its first call Monday evening, a structure fire in Station 12's area. The rig should last us many years. It replaces a 2002 rescue unit that served our community valiantly. The older rescue is being prepped for sale at a government auction in the upcoming months.
7/19/13
After several years planning and five months of construction, our new Pierce Heavy Duty Rescue unit is officially finished and has been delivered to our department. The new unit is a 2013 Pierce Velocity Combination Rescue. This feature means that half of the rescue will have walk-in space for a small command/rehab center. The other half is non-walk-in and allows us more room to store various equipment. The rescue is able to fit five people at a time. It carries an abundance tools for a wide variety of purposes. On the rig, you will find extrication equipment, rope rescue gear, HAZMAT equipment, and many different types of cutting tools. The new rescue will run as Heavy Rescue 3 out of station 3. It will replace an older 2002 Spartan/Hackney rescue unit. The older unit will be sold at auction. The new rescue will be placed into service on Monday, July 29th, after crews undergo thorough training on the new apparatus.
3/18/13
A brand new rescue unit has been ordered, and is being designed by Pierce Manufacturing. The rescue will be a "combination" unit, meaning that it will be half walk-in, half non-walk-in. The truck will feature many of the design requests presented by firefighters in the department. They have submitted specific requests and want to see the new truck best fit their needs. The new heavy-duty rescue will replace an older 2002 Spartan/Hackney rescue unit. It will continue to run as Heavy Rescue 3 out of Station 3. The rescue is expected to arrive in mid-July.
1/11/13
Our goal to expand to include more units and stations has become a reality. Thanks to a federal grant, we are able to add three new units to our fire district; one engine and two medic units. One medic unit will be assigned to Station 7 and run as Medic 7. The other new engine and medic will be apart of the newly designated Station 13. Station 13 will be located on Winslow Road and house Engine 13 and Medic 13. The new station will provide service to the rapidly growing Prairie East and West community. For the time being, Station 13 units will be housed at a temporary station on Winslow Rd. Construction crews are expected to break ground on the new station in April, 2013. The addition of these apparatus will allow us to provide even quicker service to the citizens of Riverview.
1/3/13
Happy New Year from the Riverview Fire District! All of us here wish you and your loved ones a happy and safe 2013.
10/1/12
The new Fire Station 2 on Hillview St was finally opened on Monday, October 1st. The new fire station replaced the old station 2, which was demolished last year. The state-of-the-art fire station is LEED approved and has two drive-through bays, a kitchen, two living areas, three offices for officers, ten private bunk rooms for firefighters, and a conference room. A ceremony was held on Monday not only to christen the station, but also to welcome the new Engine 2. Engine 2 is a 2012 Pierce Saber, and replaced an old 1993 EOne Quint. The mayor of Riverview was in attendance to cut the ribbon. The new station received its first call just minutes after the ceremony ended, when the crews of Engine 2 and Medic 2 were dispatched to a vehicle accident. A public viewing of the station will be held on Saturday, October 6th.
7/3/12
The progress on Fire Station 2 is going great and the construction is on schedule. Construction crews are completing the roof, painting the outside, and installing the garage bay doors. They will then complete the interior of the station. Fire Station 2 will be a two-story, LEED approved building. It will house Quint 2 and Medic 2. Construction was started last September. The station is expected to be opened on October 1st.
5/7/12
Tomorrow our department will be having a Mass Casualty Incident (MCI) drill at the city shelter in downtown Riverview. This will be a simulation preparing emergency workers for a possible MCI situation in the future. The training will simulate that a tornado has hit the city and many people are injured and in need of assistance. Firefighter/EMTs and Firemedics will help the "injured" victims. The victims are student volunteers from a local high school. This drill will ensure our crews are ready in the event of a real catastrophe and will make a real incident go much smoother and more structured. Do not be alarmed to see many of our fire engines, medic units, and other emergency vehicles on scene.
1/2/12
The results are in for the 2011 run stats and we are ready to announce our annual awards for busiest engine and medic of the year. The Busiest Engine Award goes to Quint 2. It responded to over 2100 calls this past year. This is third time since the award was introduced in 1998 that Q2 has won the award. The Busiest Medic of the Year award goes to Medic 8. Medic 8 responded to exactly 3050 calls in 2011. Medic 8 has won the award 3 years in a row and 8 times since 1998. Each unit will have the prestigious trophy in their living quarters until next year when the new winners are announced. Congratulations to Quint 2 and Medic 8 on being the busiest companies in the department!
1/1/12
We had a very busy 2011 year here in Riverview. We responded to over 40,000 calls in 2011 and saw everything from medical calls to structure fires to buildings collapses. We hope you and your family have a wonderful New Year and a safe 2012.
11/09/11
Two new engines have been received. There are both 2011 Pierce Quantum models and will replace Quint 7 and Quint 11. These new engines replace very old apparatus and give our department the opportunity to use the latest in fire technology. The engines have been paid for through a federal grant. One of the old quints will be kept as a spare unit, the other is being sold to another department.
9/23/11- Construction To Begin On New Fire Station 2
Effective September 26, the crews of station 2 will be moved to temporary facility while their station gets rebuilt. The project will include demolition of the old station and a new station to be built on the original site. It will be a two-story structure that will be LEED approved. It is expected to be completed in 13 months. Until the new station is constructed, the crews of Quint 2 and Medic 2 have moved to a vacant building formally used as a chiropractic facility. It will be very similar to station 2 and will have sleeping and living quarters, a kitchen, and a meeting room, while the apparatus will be parked under a large tent outside. Because the temporary facility is only one block away from the old firehouse, response times will not be affected.
9/11/11
To honor our fallen brothers, we here at the Riverview Fire District had a great idea to run stairs at the tallest building in the city. At 8:46 A.M. we dispatched Engine 1, Engine 9, Ladder 5, and Battalion 1 to 12 Gagnon Tower to climb 343 steps, more than 11 floors. We dispatched them at 8:46 to signify the time that the first plane hit the World Trade Center; 343 steps to represent the 343 firefighters who lost their lives that day. Once all the units were on scene, crews made their way to the stairwell and began their ascent to the twelve floor. The climb was followed by a minute of silence to honor all the innocent lives lost on that fateful day. You will forever be in our hearts.
9/8/11
The Riverview Fire District had received three new pieces of apparatus to replace older units and to add to our department. We received two new 2011 Freightliner M2/Wheeled Coach ambulances to replace Medic 2 and Medic 4. We have also purchased a 2010 Chevy Tahoe to be used as EMS 1. Once the drivers training is completed and decals are added, the new apparatus will be placed into service. We are currently looking to transition from quint use to engine use to save costs in our department, although we keep several quints to keep our department as versatile as possible.
8/28/11
Several people in our department are being promoted to fit the needs of our constantly growing department. For our new EMS chiefs, we are promoting three people into this role. Firemedic Perry Newton has been named A-shift EMS chief, Battalion chief Tom Brantley will be the B-shift EMS chief, and Battalion chief David Shapiro will be the C-shift EMS chief. To fill Brantley and Shapiro's roles as battalion chief, Lt. David Yost will be the new Battalion 2 chief for B-shift while Lt. Evan Davis will be the Battalion 3 chief for C-shift. Congratulations on their promotions!
8/26/11
We are continuing our search for two new quints to replace Quint 7 and Quint 11. We are going to have a 2011 Pierce Impel for one week as a test rig. The new rig will be stationed at Station 11 starting on Monday, August 29 and ending its service on Monday, September 5. We have had success with Pierce units before and are hoping the Impel will fit our department's needs.
8/13/11
We are happy to announce we have finally reached an agreement with Brickoplis Aeromedical Transport or BAT for short. This agreement allows us to dispatch BAT helicopters to an emergency scene to transport patients in severe trauma conditions. BAT then transports them to one of the two trauma centers in Brickoplis. Our agreement with BAT allows patients to receive the most advanced and highest quality medical care in the country. When an emergency occurs and medical treatment is needed for patients, a paramedic on scene can request a BAT to be dispatched. A BAT will be requested in a situation where the patient is in critical condition and/or requires services our local hospitals can't provide. A BAT helicopter will then fly to the scene, pick up the patient/s, then transport them to the appropriate hospital. This agreement is requiring us to employ an additional chief, an EMS chief, 3 in total. There will be one EMS chief on duty each day who will respond to serious medical calls and assist our Firemedics. BAT service will begin in on the first day of September. This will also be the first day having an EMS chief.
8/11/11
Tomorrow our department is going to conduct a water rescue training exercise at Cold Creek River. Our crews from the dive rescue team will be there along with several other units in our department. There will be many emergency vehicles on scene, but do not get startled. This is simply a training exercise conducted once every six months. The drill is scheduled to begin at 08:00 hours tomorrow morning and end at 10:00 hours. Thank you for your cooperation!
7/11/11
At our last district board meeting, the board agreed to look into new quints to replace Quint 7(a 1994 Pierce Dash aerial) and Quint 11(a 1993 Spartan/Central States aerial) . The board is going to contact a number of fire manufacturing companies and will discuss the possible options at next month's board meeting. This is very exciting news for the fire district!
