Pocatello Fire Department reports FY24 wildland deployments, seeks council guidance on purchasing wildland engine

Fire Chief Ryan Hearn and IAFF Local 187 representative Jordan Van Every briefed the Pocatello City Council at a work session about fiscal year 2024 wildland deployments and a proposed capital purchase of a new wildland engine.

Hearn said the department sent 31 different personnel on nine deployments in FY24. Deployments are typically 14 days but sometimes extended; Hearn noted one crew remained in the field for five weeks after rotations and that individual deployments sometimes lasted 21 days. The department reported operating costs and personnel costs for deployments are covered by the requesting incident, which also pays a per-hour reimbursement rate for engines and other equipment.

Hearn told the council the city generated about $188,000 in non-tax revenue in FY24 from equipment rental rates alone; that figure excludes personnel reimbursement or other operational reimbursements. He said the department plans a capital project to purchase a brush/wildland engine for about $257,000. The purchase would use a chassis on state contract (about $71,300) and an upfit vendor in Yakima, Washington; staff said other vendors quoted in excess of $300,000 and that the proposed approach uses cooperative purchasing (Sourcewell) to satisfy procurement rules.

Union President Jordan Van Every described first-hand experience on several major incidents this year, including the Paddock Fire (about 190,000 acres burned) and assignments in Twin Falls and Gerlach, Nevada. He and the chief emphasized the training value of long-duration deployments, including exposure to larger incident command systems and credentialing opportunities for engine bosses.

Council members asked about local coverage while crews are deployed; Hearn said incidents pay for backfill and the department uses a reserve truck at home, but acknowledged surge capacity is reduced and staff weigh deployments against local operational needs. On requests routed through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact (EMAC) — a state-to-state mutual aid arrangement — Hearn said EMAC assignments differ because the state may not reimburse backfill, increasing the city’s exposure for staffing coverage.

Council members pressed for fiscal detail. Hearn said the hourly equipment reimbursement rate is uniform across participants and estimated it at about $68 to $78 per hour for the unit used on deployments; he said he did not have a per-hour wear-and-tear cost for the vehicle but that the FY24 revenue suggests deployments have been net-positive for the city. The department also reported one deployment damaged a set of tires; the incident reimbursed replacement tires.

Hearn said the proposed $257,000 project would become a frontline vehicle and that the purchase would expand local capability while allowing the department to continue sending reliable rigs on deployments. He said the city has fund 78 reserves saved from earlier years that could finance the purchase and that the department would request an amendment to move FY24 deployment revenue into Fund 78. Staff said they will bring a purchase agreement to the council agenda for formal approval next week.

No formal council vote took place at the work session. Council members expressed general support for the program and praised the department for the training and non-tax revenue generated by deployments.