Hagerstown MD, September 6, 2003. The Cumberland Valley Volunteer Firemen's Association (CVVFA) announced the appointment of seven new members to its Emergency Responders Safety Institute. The Institute, a committee of the 102-year-old Association, was formed to improve the safety of fire, law enforcement, and emergency medical service personnel operating on the roadways. Institute members include many of America's experts in the field of emergency responder safety.
Since its establishment in 2000, the Institute has played a leading national role in the development of best practices to ensure the safety of highway/roadway emergency response operations. The Institute oversees the only national program to reduce the needless deaths and injuries to emergency responders operating on the street and roadways.
The newly appointed members include:
Chief Allen Baldwin, Incident Manager, Pennsylvania Turnpike. Chief Baldwin, who formerly served as chief of the Chambersburg, PA, Fire Department, has developed and delivers a training course entitled "Fighting Fire on Limited Access Highways." Baldwin is credited with improving emergency response on one of the nations oldest and busiest toll roads.
Fire Marshal Tracy Boatwright, Fire Marshal, State of Indiana. Prior to his 1993 appointment as State Fire Marshal Mr. Boatwright was a career firefighter with the Marion Fire Department, and later a State Representative from 1987 to 1992, where he chaired and co-chaired a variety of Committees such as Roads and Transportation, Cities and Towns, and, as a combat veteran, was House Sponsor and Chairman of the Commission on Military and Veterans Affairs. He is committed as a fire service leader to make Indiana's roadways a safer place for emergency responders.
Michael Dillon, Marketing Manager, Long and Foster Companies. Mr. Dillon, of Springfield, VA, manages a fulfillment center for the distribution of highway incident safety training materials at no cost to the CVVFA.
Paramedic James Garcia, Highway Incident Victim and Advocate. Paramedic Garcia was severely injured while operating as a paramedic on a South Carolina highway. He has been a tireless advocate for the enactment of "move over" laws to help ensure the safety of emergency responders, and he was primarily responsible for the enactment of one of the nation's first such laws in his home state of South Carolina.
Firefighter Chris Hebert, Co-Founder, Firehouse.com. Mr. Hebert, a career firefighter with Washington, D.C. Fire and Rescue Department and a volunteer in nearby Prince Georges County, MD, co-founded America's top fire service web site. His firm powers Respondersafety.com, which is owned by the CVVFA and dedicated to the safety of emergency responders worldwide.
Chief William Jenaway, Ph.D., Executive Vice President, VFIS. Dr. Jenaway served as Chief of the King of Prussia PA Fire Company, and is a nationally known fire service lecturer and author. As a result of his leadership, VFIS delivers a number of highway safety programs to public safety personnel.
Chief Dennis Rubin, City Manger and Public Safety Director, City of Dothan, Alabama. Rubin, who has served as a chief fire officer in several departments, is recognized nationally for his leadership in safety issues. After a near tragedy in Norfolk, Virginia, where he served as fire chief, he developed educational programs to prevent similar incidents which he presents nationwide.
The new members join a "blue ribbon" list of public safety leaders already committed to the responder safety. A complete list of Institute members, as well as information about protecting emergency responders on the highways, can be found at Resondersafety.com
