Government
BY NICHAELA SHAHEEN
Conroe fire stations 1 Conroe Fire Department Administration Building
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2 Fire station No. 2 3 Fire station No. 4 4 Fire station No. 1 5 Fire station No. 3 6 Fire station No. 5 7 Fire station No. 6 8 Fire station No. 7
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COURTESY CITY OF CONROE
SOURCE: CITY OF CONROE/COMMUNITY IMPACT
Conroe’s new fire chief Paul Sims discusses growth, expansion plans
with before. ... My first order of business is Fire Station No. 8. ... I’ve been working on that since the first few days I was here. ... We’re optimistic we’ll get going by summer, but that remains to be seen. ... I did a survey and got great feedback from the organization, which will help us lay out a roadmap moving forward. What’s your vision for the department as the community continues to grow? My vision is Station No. 8—one of the areas of feedback from administration as well as the fire department personnel is we’re behind. We are [behind] on fire stations, and we know that we need to get there. We’re working on identifying locations for Stations [Nos.] 11 and 12 and possibly more. ... We’ve recently hired some new staff, and we’re continuing to recruit. ... We’re exploring the feasibility of hosting our own fire academy. ... This will help recruit local residents who may not have the resources to attend an academy elsewhere. How is the department adapting to the increased fire risk associated with rapid growth and dense tree cover? This area is something we’ve thought about for quite some time. We’ve had dense tree coverage for years. ... With development, some of that has been cleared, but it remains a concern. ... I can say that our group of guys have routinely been prepared [for
Paul Sims became the new Conroe fire chief after City Council appointed him during its Dec. 2 meeting, according to prior reporting. Conroe Fire Department is made up of 155 firefighters and covers 77 square miles with a popu- lation of 114,00 residents, Sims said in an interview with Community Impact . Sims also said he believes that once the development moratorium is lifted, much of the development that has been slowed is going to hit a rapid pace, and staying up to date with fire equipment and personnel is at the top of his list. Can you share a little about your career journey and what led you to this position? I started as a volunteer firefighter here for the city of Conroe, I got the opportunity to get hired, become a firefighter, and work my way through the ranks. ... I retired here in 2016 and took a fire chief’s position in Central Texas. ... A position came open back here ... with Montgomery County Emergency Services District No. 9. ... Then the fire chief position opened here in Conroe. ... It was a lifelong dream to be the fire chief here, especially with my family history in the depart- ment. ... My father was a firefighter here, and my great uncle was the fire chief for 20 years. What are your top priorities as the new fire chief? 50% of the organization is new, so I’ve been getting out to the stations, meeting the new faces, and reconnecting with those I worked
wildland fires]. ... We have a team that’s specifically trained and deployed when requested by ... Texas. Has the department added personnel or equipment to keep up with the area’s growth? We added Station No. 7 six or seven years ago. ... We have Station No. 8 that will be coming. In the course of that same time frame that I was gone, they added some personnel to specific apparatus around the city. ... We’re still a little bit behind, but we’re striving to get there. What challenges does increased development pose for emergency response times? The growth typically creates increased call volume, and it creates the traffic due to congestion and infrastructure strains, not only for the fire department, but certainly for the rest of the city. ... So addressing these and other challenges requires a strategic plan. The fire department, along with city administration, is going to be working on putting something together that helps us identify that and how we move forward.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity. For a longer version, visit communityimpact.com.
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CONROE - MONTGOMERY EDITION
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