By David Slone
Times-Union

WARSAW — Before being named chief for the Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory in April, Joel Shilling was promoted to fire marshal, replacing Joe Fretz, who retired.

With Shilling’s promotion, that left the position of fire marshal open.

Tuesday, June 4, the Warsaw-Wayne Fire Territory was introduced to Lt. Jeremy Williams, who was promoted to fire marshal recently.

A promotion ceremony for Williams and firefighter Tony Shilling – who was promoted to lieutenant with Williams’ promotion to fire marshal – will take place from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. June 17 at Warsaw Fire Station 15, 620 W. CR 200S, Warsaw.

On Williams’ promotion, Chief Shilling said Williams has been with the fire department for 18 years and is a valuable asset.

“He started last Tuesday (as fire marshal), so he’s learning his position and doing very well with it. I’m very pleased with the decision. Had a great group of candidates put in for it, it was a tough decision, but I feel this is a good one for the department, so I just want to welcome Jeremy and introduce him to you guys,” Chief Shilling said.

Williams said his official start date was May 26 and when Mayor Jeff Grose asked him how it was going, he said it was going good so far.

“We’re barely scratching the surface, so ask me that in about six months,” Williams said. “No, it really is going good working with Joel. It’s been amazing. So I’m very excited about it. I definitely have a lot to learn.”

He said he has Fretz on speed dial and talks to him about twice a day.

Board member David Allbritten asked him how training was going.

Right now, Williams said, he is Inspector 2 class and already has that state certification. Three days a week he’s going up to Goshen for classes, along with Chief Shilling. Williams is also learning on the job with the state fire marshal.

The one certification Williams said he didn’t have yet in being promoted to fire marshal was for origin/cause. He’s looking for classes to take. Allbritten said it’s a difficult and long course.

Williams said the good thing was that all the WWFT battalion chiefs are investigator certified.

With Tony Shilling being promoted to lieutenant, which was based off a list of candidates from a year ago, Chief Shilling said that list is now exhausted and another list will have to be created.

“Jeremy, welcome and thank you for being here,” Grose said.

Williams said he was excited to be here. He and his wife have lived on Chapman Lake with their two kids for 15 years.

Chief Shilling later updated the board on the 1991 Pierce fire engine the WWFT donated to the Macy Volunteer Fire Department. He said members of the Macy department came to Warsaw Monday to receive the apparatus and were ecstatic to take it.

“They were very, very thankful and wanted me to pass on a thank you to you guys for allowing that to happen,” he said. “In talking with them, they’re struggling and it’s a huge asset that we were able to help them out with.”

On the ladder truck that needed repaired because of issues with the swivel where the electric and hydraulic lines and the waterway all pass through, Chief Shilling it went down to Indianapolis two weeks ago and they got it back Monday. It’s back in service and operating as it should.

Giving the monthly fire activity report, Chief Shilling said they had 260 responses in April, with 57 of those incidents overlapping (21.9%).

For each fire station district, he said District 1, station 17, had 98 runs; District 2, station 13, had 107 runs; and there were 23 runs in District 3, station 15. Administration took 32 calls.

They had 752 hours of training.

Community service included about 50 hours of public education throughout the schools and they did a 4-H workshop.
In her report to the board, Alicia Mediano, Lutheran EMS, said that for April they had a total of 418 calls, which was a slow month for them. Outside of the 911 calls, they had a busy month for their CPR program, talking to students about CPR.

Chris Fancil, EMS chief and Community Assistance, Resources, Emergency Services director, reported they had 70 interactions in May through the C.A.R.E.S. program. He said they’re getting more referrals from law enforcement, some from central dispatch and some from other entities. Of the 70 interactions, 42 were in-person and 28 were phone calls.

Eighteen of the 70 were new consumers, while 52 were recurrent.

“A lot of these folks we’re doing a lot of follow-ups with, just to make sure that they are taking advantage of the resources we’re putting them in touch with,” Fancil said. “That’s part of the deal, is we have to try to make sure these people utilize those resources so they can live a better life and so we can get them the help that is out there. This community – I’ve said it before – has a lot of resources, we just have to put them in touch with each other.”

Fancil also told the board they finished the Crisis Intervention Team program in early May that C.A.R.E.S. Coordinator Mikaela Bixler and Warsaw Police Department officer Chris Francis teamed up to teach. Seventeen people completed the program, and Fancil said they heard a lot of good things about it. Another program is being planned for September.

“So I think it was a good program. It seemed to be well received,” he said.

Allbritten asked how they determine how long to continue the follow-ups. Fancil said it was scenario dependant.

“We have a young lady that we have followed — Chief (Mike) Wilson and I started helping her — and we’re still helping her because of her situation,” Fancil responded.

The woman has two skills coaches from Bowen Center and it’s taken a number of people to help her stay on the road to a good life.

“Some people we meet once and we get them in touch with somebody and we’re done. And we have fulfilled their needs,” he said.

Others, the CARES team sees repeatedly.

“So it just depends on the situation,” Fancil said.