Chief Tom Ames of the Hurricane Valley Fire Service Special Service District told the Rockville Town Council on Oct. 15 that district crews responded to 26 incidents in Springdale, five in Rockville and four in Zion National Park last month.

The report said high-profile events such as the Red Bull Rampage have increased standby demands and that the district relied on outside mutual aid during recent events. “We had our kind of our first major injury. One of the female riders during practice, she wrecked at the very top,” Ames said, describing a helivac that hoisted a patient to an ambulance. He added that helicopter support shortened what could have been a three- to four-hour evacuation from the mountain.

The district reported several near-term purchases and longer-term projects. Ames said two ambulances are due next September, two in October and two in November, and that brush trucks purchased earlier are on a multiyear delivery schedule. The district has already procured apparatus it expects will be used over the next four years.

Ames also described progress on a new administrative station planned at Sand Hollow; the district awarded an architectural contract to Method Studios and is working with the water conservancy district, which provided property inside Sand Hollow State Park so the district would not need to buy land. Ames said staff hope to break ground by the end of the first quarter of next year.

On funding, Ames said a sales-tax change approved in a recent special legislative session and signed by the governor will start delivering revenue to the district in the following fiscal year. “Chief Decker told us in our staff meeting this morning... he’s anticipating the funding… will probably start gathering that around the May–June 1 timeframe,” Ames said. He said property-tax reductions may follow in two or three increments after sales-tax receipts are evaluated.

Ames said the district bills event organizers for standby services and has moved to assess late fees when event organizers request last-minute resources. “They’ll pay just whatever the cost is to provide that service,” he said of event promoters.

Why it matters: the combination of more large outdoor events, rising standby needs and multi-year equipment timetables affects local emergency coverage and budgets in Rockville and neighboring jurisdictions.

Looking ahead, Ames told the council the district will continue coordinating with municipal and county partners as new funding arrives and as the new station design proceeds.