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Truckee Meadows Fire reports 3,072 calls in South Valleys in 2024, warns of winter hazards
Summary
Division Chief Joe Shum told the CAB that Truckee Meadows Fire and Rescue handled 3,072 calls in the South Valleys service area in 2024, described staffing and training updates and urged caution for flooded roads and burn‑scar runoff.
Truckee Meadows Fire and Rescue Division Chief Joe Shum told the South Valleys Citizens Advisory Board that crews in the South Valleys responded to 3,072 calls in 2024 — an average of about 256 calls per month — and that crews remain fully staffed after a recent academy graduation.
Why it matters: the call volume reflects steady demand for fire and medical services in the area and informs staffing, station and equipment planning.
Shum said Jan. 31 graduates from the Carson City Regional Academy joined Truckee Meadows training to drive the department’s larger water‑tender trucks and that five recruits completed the local academy. He said the department staffed all positions approved in the budget and is training to cover planned retirements.
On incident mix, Shum gave a breakdown for the South Valleys area in 2024: three fires that were not large or substantial, about 145 medical calls and motor‑vehicle accidents, one minor hazardous‑materials gas‑leak incident, roughly 64 good‑intent calls and about 30 assists or false alarms. He urged drivers not to drive through flooded intersections and described increased mudslide risk in areas below recent burn scars such as the Davis and Callahan scars.
Shum said the Truckee Meadows Water Authority tests and paints hydrants on a regular schedule and that, by late 2024, TMWSA had tested roughly two‑thirds of hydrants in the authority’s service area, though he could not provide a public web link for test records on the spot and invited residents to email the department for contact information.
Shum also noted ongoing replacement of retired leadership — including a national search for a new fire chief following Chief Moore’s retirement — and anticipated additional retirements this year. He closed by saying the Hidden Valley station build is on track and could be occupied by October if permitting and other steps proceed as planned.
The division chief took questions from CAB members about traffic hot spots (Mount Rose Highway and I‑580/US‑395 were cited) and interagency differences in drug testing policies; Shum said Truckee Meadows follows a zero‑tolerance drug policy for personnel testing.
