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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0959.000 2022-2024Mitchell D. Roth ,l (Moi, COUNTY OF HAWAII Fire Commission 101 Pauahi Street, Suite 9 Hilo, Hawaii 96720 Phone: (808) 932-2950 Fax: (808) 932-2949 July 8, 2024 Mayor Mitch D. Roth County of Hawaii 25 Aupuni St. Hilo, HI 96720 Gerald Kosaki, Chair Carlene Wolr. Vice Chair Brian CUShnie, Member Steven ilirakarui, Nlember Corey Luke, Nlember Shod Magsalin. Member Wesley iklattos. Member Wayne Perrin Jr.. Membei, SUBJECT: FIRE COMMISSION'S ANNUAL REPORTS FOR 2022 AND 2023 Dear Mayor Roth: Attached are the Fire Commission's Annual Reports for 2022 and 2023. Sincerely, X� Gerald T. Kosaki, Chair County of Hawaii Fire Commission cc: Deanna Sako, Managing Director Heather Kimball, Council Chair €. ortotr�. No. �q Lief. To: 'Zef. Date JUL 1 1 2024 Hawaii Coujg)p is an Eclucrl Opporlunil), Provider cind Etnployer. COUNTY OF HAWAII FIRE COMMISSION 2022 ANNUAL REPORT CHAIR Gerald Kosaki VICE CHAIR Benjamin Agdeppa MEMBERS Corey Luke Gregory Henkel Shon Magsalin Wesley Mattos Gene Nakashima Daniel Paleka Carlene Wolf Commission Overview and Purpose Pursuant to the authority set forth in the Hawaii County Charter section 7-4.6, the County of Hawaii Fire Commission (hereby referred to as the "commission") has the responsibility to Uphold the powers and duties set forth below: 1. Adopt rules necessary for the conduct of its business and review rules for the administration of the department. 2. Review the annual budget prepared by the Fire Chief and make recommendations thereon to the mayor, the managing director and the council. 3. Review the department's operations for the purposes of recommending improvements to the Fire Chief. 4. Evaluate at least annually the performance of the Fire Chief and submit a report to the mayor, managing director and the council. 5. Review personnel actions within the department for conformance with the policies under Section 7-4.2 of this charter. 6. Hear complaints of citizens concerning the department or its personnel and, if necessary, make recommendations to the Fire Chief on appropriate corrective actions. 7. Submit an annual report to the mayor, managing director, and the council on its activities. Fire Commission Activities Membership and Meetings During 2022, the commission held a total of 8 rnectings. Four of those meetings were held in Hilo and four in Kona. The other four meetings were not held due to either a lack of quorum or the transition to a new secretary for the commission. Citizen Complaints During 2022, there were 3 complaints to the fire department that were heard and addressed by the commission. Annual Evaluation of the Fire Chief The commission completed the annual performance of the Fire Chief for the term of July 2021 to June 2022. The results of this evaluation were submitted to the mayor, managing director, and the council. The Fire Chief was rated on leadership, communication, strategic planning, resource allocation, safety and emergency management operations. The overall score for the hire Chief was 4.0 on a scale of l.0 to 5.0, with 5.0 being the highest. He received a rating of "Superior." Hawaii Fire Department Operations The Fire Chief submits a report to the commission for review and comment at our monthly meetings. At these meetings, the fire chief presents this report and fields any questions or comments that the commissioners may have in regards to the departmental operations. Included in these reports is the budget and alternative funding, various types of incidents, personnel changes, and other operational concerns. Fire Commission Recommendations After reviewing the Fire Chief s reports and discussions in our meetings, we have collle up with these recommendations: l . Continue to seek alternative funding through grants and other sources to support the fire department's operations with needed equipment and staffing needs. 2. Continue to support minimum staffing needs and seek to expand manpower to provide for this. 3. Support the fire department's operational needs with emphasis on Special Operations in technical rescue and hazardous materials (Hazmat) response. Items such as the rescue boat and hazmat monitoring equipment are in need of upgrade, replacement, and/or repair. 4. Continue to support the fire department's vehicle replacement program. 5. Support in department safety program with possibly creating positions such as an Incident Safety Officer (ISO) and Health Safety Officer (HSO). 6. Continue to provide training in the Incident Command System (ICS) for all personnel and support an all -hazards Incident Management Team. 7. Continue to provide training with the Civil Support Team (CST) for our haznlat team and monthly rescue training of our rescue personnel. 8. Improve the department's Fire Communication dispatch working conditions to aid in the retention of personnel. 9. Continue to expand our Ocean Safety operations with personnel, equipment, and expanding our rescue water craft coverage. 10. Improve communication and working relations with the various unions involved in the fire department such as the HFFA, UPW, and HGFA. Conclusion The Fire Commission strives to adhere to the County Charter while attempting to provide guidance and advice to the Fire Chief. Several commissioners have much experience ill fire suppression operations as they have since retired after working in the department. This experience is a valuable resource that has been used to help progress the department in a positive direction. Funding is always an issue but not always available. Therefore, utilizing resources effectively is a key component for the Fire Chief to possess moving forward. It was evident in this past year that the Fire Chief wants to do a good job and is passionate and knowledgeable, however, he needs to be open to suggestion and be willing to take advice in the area of operations due to his limited experience in this area. We would also like to see him work more with the unions and orlr commission to improve ill maintaining order in the department with consistency and by instilling discipline when applicable at all levels. COUNTY OF HAWAII FIRE COMMISSION 2023 ANNUAL REPORT Ci���7 Gerald Kosaki NICE CHAIR Carlene Wolf COMMISSIONERS Gregory Henkel Corey Luke Shon Magsalin Wesley Mattos Gene Nakashima Commission Overview and Purpose Pursuant to the authority set forth in the Hawaii County Charter section 7-4.6, the County of Hawaii Fire Commission (hereby referred to as the "commission") has the responsibility to Uphold the powers and duties set forth below: . Adopt rifles necessary for the conduct of its business and review rules for the administration of the department. 2. Review the annual budget prepared by the Fire Chief and make recommendations thereon to the mayor, the managing director and the council. 3. Review the department's operations for the purposes of recommending improvements to the Fire Chief. 4. Evaluate at least annually the performance of the Fire Chief and submit a report to the mayor, managing director and the council. 5. Review personnel actions within the department for conformance with the policies under Section 7-4.2 of this charter. 6. Hear complaints of citizens concerning the department or its personnel and, if necessary, make recommendations to the Fire Chief on appropriate corrective actions. 7. Submit an annual report to the mayor, managing director, and the council on its activities. Fire Commission Activities Membership and Meetings During 2023, the commission held a total of 9 meetings. Five of those meetings were held in Hilo and four in Kona. The other three meetings were not held due to either a lack of quorum or the transition to a new secretary for the commission. Citizen Complaints ' During 2023, there was 1 complaint to the fire department that was heard and addressed by the commission. Annual Evaluation of the Fite Chief The commission completed the annual performance of the Fire Chief for the terns of July 2022 to June 2023, keeping consistent with the previous year. The results of this evaluation were submitted to the mayor, managing director, and the council. The Fire Chief was rated oil leadership, communication, strategic planning, resource allocation, safety and emergency management operations. The overall score for the Fire Chief was 3.4 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest. He received a rating of "Satisfactory." Hawaii Fire Department Operations The Fire Chief submits a report to the commission for review and comment at our monthly meetings. At these meetings, the fire chief presents this report and fields any questions or comments that the commissioners may have in regards to the departmental operations. Included in these reports is the budget and alternative funding, various types of incidents, personnel changes, and other operational concerns. Fire Commission Recommendations After reviewing the Fire Chiefs reports and discussions in our meetings, we have come up with these recommendations; l . Continue to seek alternative funding through grants and other sources to support the fire departments operations with needed equipment and staffing needs. 2. Continue to support niinilnum staffing needs and seek to expand manpower to provide for this. 3. Follow up on the fire department's operational needs with emphasis on Special Operations in technical rescue and hazardous materials (Hazmat) response. Items such as the rescue boat and hazmat monitoring equipment still need to be addressed from the prior year. 4. Continue ongoing support to the fire department's vehicle replacement program. 5. Support in department safety program. A safety officer was recruited from outside the department and not someone from within. This has led to some criticism within the rank and file. We would like to see the Fire Chief possibly create or identify positions such as an Incident Safety Officer (ISO) and Health Safety Officer (HSO) for the safety of his personnel. 6. Continue to provide training in the Incident Command System (ICS) for all personnel and support an al I -hazards Incident Management Team. 7. Continue to provide training with the Civil Support Team (CST) for our hazmat team and monthly rescue training of our rescue personnel. 8. Improve the department's Fire Communication dispatch working conditions to aid in the retention of personnel. This area has always been a problem and we have not seen a marked improvement thus far. 9. Continue to expand our Oceall Safety operations by expanding our rescue water craft coverage. 10. Improve communication and working relations with the various unions involved in the fire department such as the HFFA, UPW, and HGEA. Conclusion Tile Fire Commission strives to adhere to the County Charter while attempting to provide guidance and advice to the Fire Chief. To reiterate from this past year, several commissioners have much operational experience as they have since retired after working in the department. This experience is a valuable resource that has been used to help progress the department in a positive direction. Funding is always an issue that will be ongoing and the Chief has been utilizing alternative funding well. We would like to emphasize again that the Chief needs to be more open to suggestions and be willing to take advice in the area of operations due to his limited experience in this area. His lack of expertise in this area and reluctance to be open to constructive criticism led to his lower rating in this past year's evaluation. We would also like to see him work more with the unions and be willing to take advice from the commission to improve operations while maintaining order in the department with consistency and by instilling discipline when applicable at all levels.