Fire Wire - Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services

The Fire Wire
Cherokee County Office of Fire and Emergency Services
July-August Volume 11 - Issue 4
Diane Riegle
Retires
Story on page 5

The Fire Wire
Published bi-monthly by the
Cherokee County Office of Fire
and Emergency Services
Tim Prather
Fire Chief
The Fire Wire
Visit the Virtual Boot Drive
Website
Page 2
Tim Cavender
Editor
Eddie Robinson
Assistant Fire Chief
Greg Erdely
Field Operations Chief
Rick Ruh
Fire Marshal
Kevin Botts
Support Services Manager
Jill Mabley, M.D.,FACEP
Medical Director
Cherokee County Office of
Fire and Emergency Services
150 Chattin Drive
Canton, GA 30115
Phone: [678] 493-4000
Fax: [678] 493-4034
www.cherokeecountyfire.org
Office Hours: Monday through Friday
8:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M.
Closed Saturday, Sunday and Holidays
ABOUT THE COVER: Diane
Riegle, Administrative Assistant
for Support Services, retired
at the end of June. Coworkers
and friends said
goodbye to Diane at her retirement
luncheon.
Story on page 5
Visitors can go to the Give Burns The Boot website to make a donation
to Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services’ annual boot drive.
The Georgia Firefighters Burn Foundations has set up something
special this year for those of you who donate to the annual Boot Drive
that we do here in Cherokee County. You can now make a donation on
their new virtual boot drive website by going to the following address:
www.giveburnstheboot.org.
Once you reach the website, click on the “Support Your Local Fire
Department” tab and then click on “Cherokee County Fire and
Emergency Services.” Once you reach the fire department’s page, go
to the top right-hand corner and click on “Donate Now.” Just follow the
instructions to make a donation to this worthy cause.
Fire departments across the state of Georgia have generously
collected more than $12 million dollars on behalf of the Georgia
Firefighters Burn Foundation since 1990. A portion of these funds have
come back to your local fire department to help with their own
communities with fire safety and burn prevention programs.
You will see Cherokee County firefighters hitting the streets to ask for
your donation to the Give Burns the Boot Drive during the month of
September. However, you can donate now to help us continue to save
lives and prevent burn injuries in Cherokee County.
Donate Today!

The Fire Wire
Page 3
Nine Firefighters Recently Promoted
Six Cherokee County firefighters were promoted
during ceremonies today on May 1st at the
Cherokee County Administrative Offices located at
The Bluffs in Canton. Greg Erdely was promoted as
the new Division Chief for Field Operations. Kerry
Hughes was promoted to Battalion Chief. Shannon
Gibbs was promoted to Captain and Ross
Carmichael was promoted to Lieutenant. Plus, two
firefighters, Clay Gridley and Heath King, were
promoted to Sergeant.
Attending the promotion ceremony were (left to
right): Tim Prather, Cherokee County Fire Chief,
Eddie Robinson, Assistant Fire Chief, Greg Erdely,
Division Chief of Field Operations, Kerry Hughes,
Battalion Chief, Captain Shannon Gibbs, Lieutenant
Ross Carmichael, Sergeant Clay Gridley and
Sergeant Heath King.
Greg Erdely, came to work for the fire department 18
years ago and was promoted to the rank of Sergeant
in September of 1998 and promoted to Lieutenant in
November of 2001. After being promoted to Captain
in 2003, Erdley went on to become a Battalion Chief
in 2005. Kerry Hughes has worked for Cherokee
County Fire and Emergency Services for 25 years.
In 1996, Hughes received his first promotion to
Sergeant. Three years later, he was promoted to
Lieutenant and in 2003 he became a Captain.
Shannon Gibbs has been with the department since
1999 and was promoted to Sergeant two years later. He became a Lieutenant in 2008. Ross Carmichael’s
employment with the fire department started in 2001. He became a Sergeant in August of 2003. Clay
Gridley has been with the department since 2007 and Heath King reported for work in 2008.
Three Cherokee County firefighters were promoted
during ceremonies on June 5th that were also held
at the Cherokee County Administrative Offices
located at The Bluffs in Canton. Phillip Shrout, David
Gann and John Carroll were promoted to the rank of
Sergeant.
John Carroll came to work for Cherokee County Fire
and Emergency Services in 2004, while David Gann
and Phillip Shrout started working with the
department in 2007.
Numerous firefighters, chiefs and family members
attended the event. Congratulations to all that were
promoted today.
Attending the promotion ceremony were (left to
right): Greg Erdely, Field Operations Chief, Eddie
Robinson, Assistant Fire Chief, Sergeant Phillip
Shrout, Sergeant David Gann, Sergeant John Carrol
and Tim Prather, Cherokee County Fire Chief.

The Fire Wire
Page 4
Cherokee County Fire Department Participates in
Blankets Creek Ribbon Cutting
Ribbon cutting ceremonies were held on June 25th
at the Blankets Creek Bike Trails, located at 2125
Sixes Road. Blankets Creek Bike Trails recently had
some renovations including new restrooms, an
increase in size to the parking lot, a new paved
entrance, a couple of new pavilions, and a bike wash
station.
Cherokee County Fire Operations Chief, Greg
Erdely, speaks to those gathered at the event at
Blankets Creek Bike Trails.
Representatives from Cherokee County Fire and
Emergency Services were on scene today to
showing off their new fire rescue boat and ATV with
a patient transport trailer. Cherokee County Field
Operations Chief, Greg Erdely, spoke about these
two new pieces of equipment that will be very
beneficial to the fire department if we have to get to
a biker in the case of an emergency. Some of the
bike trails are very narrow which prevents an
ambulance to travel to the injured person.
“The recent purchase of an ATV will help us get the biker much quicker,” said Erdely. The bike trails also
back up to Lake Allatoona and, on several occasions, we have used the fire rescue boat to get to an injured
person on the bike trail. Several Cherokee County firefighters, members of the Cherokee County Board of
Commissioners, the Cherokee Recreation and Parks Department, the Woodstock chapter of the Southern
Off-Road Bicycle Association (SORBA) and representatives of the Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce
attended this morning’s ceremonies.
Help Us Save Lives At The Animal Shelter
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services is
competing in the Choose A Hero Contest to benefit
the Cherokee County Animal Shelter. Animal lovers
are asked to go by the local animal shelter, located
on Univeter Road, and purchase a t-shirt of your
favorite public safety heroes, either Cherokee
County Fire and Emergency Services or the
Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office.
The t-shirts are $10.00 each and proceeds will go to
the animal shelter to help with the fight to save more
lives. Please support this cause and please support
your local firefighters in this competition.
PHOTO AT LEFT - Laura King, Office Clerk for
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services,
models the new t-shirt to support the animal shelter.

The Fire Wire
Diane Riegle Retires
Page 5
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services paid
tribute on June 18th to Diane Riegle who is retiring
from the fire department at the end of
this month. Diane came to work at
headquarters in March of 2005 as an
administrative assistant for the
Support Services Department. A
luncheon was held in her honor today
at fire headquarters in Canton.
After a wonderful lunch,
Cherokee County Fire Chief,
Tim Prather, came forward to thank Diane for her
hard work and stated that she was always available
to help if you needed something in a hurry. Diane’s
boss, Kevin Botts, Manager of Supports Services,
said that Diane will definitely be missed, but he
wished her the best. Diane has stated that she will
spend a lot of her retirement on the golf course.
Diane received flowers and numerous gifts during
today’s luncheon.
Diane lives in Canton with her husband, Dave. She
enjoys golf, walking, watching football, the Braves
and PGA/LPGA golf. She is originally from
Indianapolis, Indiana.
Diane Riegel attends her retirement luncheon with
her husband, Dave.
We thank Diane for her services to Cherokee County
Fire and Emergency Services and we wish her the
best during her retirement years.
Cherokee County Fire Chief, Tim Prather, presents
Diane with a retirement card signed by many of her
coworkers.
You can tell by Diane’s expression that she likes one
of her retirement gifts.

The Fire Wire
Cherokee County Firefighters Win
Ironman Challenge
Page 6
Four firefighters with Cherokee County Fire and
Emergency Services placed first in the second
annual Ironman Challenge that was held on May
17th at Cumberland Mall, just north of Atlanta.
The Ironman Challenge is done in partnership with
the Metro Atlanta Fire Officers Association and
showcases the expertise and physical abilities of
metro Atlanta firefighters in a head-to-head-skills
competition. According to Cherokee County
firefighter, Kevin Hamilton, “The course was 7
stations with a four man team. The first station was a
quick dress, you had to pull a 220 pound tire, with 50
feet of a 3 inch hose line attached, down 75 feet and
back. The next challenges included advancing a 1-3/
4 inch charged hose though serpentine, a forcible
entry exercise, go through a 2 foot by 2 foot by 8 foot tube, over an A frame and then breach a wall before
heading to the finish line with all tools, team members and nozzle. All team members had to finish each
station completely before you could move to the next.”
The event was a head to head heat with the two fastest times racing each other in the finals for first place. A
Cobb County team had an original time of 6:15 and Cherokee County placed second with a time of 7:09.
When the final heat was held, Cherokee County firefighters beat Cobb County by 1 second with a time of
6:58.
Besides Hamilton, the other members of the Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services team were
Jonathan Gottfried, Alex Adams and Frank Madonna. The team will be receiving a trophy and a couple sets
of Paratech Irons.
Ehlke Toughest Firefighter
Cherokee County Firefighter, Rick Ehlke won the Toughfest Firefighter
Competition at the Georgia Police and Fire Games that were held in
Dalton, Georgia last month.
Firefighters had to participate in a series of events consisting of a high
rise pack carry, hose hoist, forcible entry, hose advance, and victim
rescue.
Ehlke won 1st place in his age category (45-49), plus, he won the
overall category as well with a time of 2:31.44. The second place
winner was a 36 year old firefighter from Columbus, Georgia, who was
approximately 10 minutes behind Ehlke’s time. In Ehlke’s age category,
he won the competition handidly by defeating the second place winner
by over 30 minutes.

The Fire Wire
Page 7
Fire Explorers Hold Senior Night and Change of
Command Ceremony
Cherokee County Fire and
Emergency Services Explorer
Post #469 held their annual
Senior Night and Change of
Command Ceremony at fire
station #22 near Bridgemill on
Tuesday night, May 14th.
The exiting youth officers passed
their helmets off to the new youth
officers and Captain Josh
Germon passed the Post Guide
On off to the new post Captain,
Nick Leslie. Other explorers who
were promoted include Carson
Caglioni and Brooke Ice who
were promoted to Lieutenants
and Bradley Hough and Josiah
Gnanamuttu were both promoted
to the rank of Sergeants.
The new officers were “charged”
by lead advisor Michael Sims. A
New Officers for 2013-2014 are (left to right): Sgt. Josiah Gnanamuttu,
Lt. Brooke Ice, Capt. Nick Leslie, Sgt. Brad Hough, Lt. Carson Caglioni.
few words were said by Cherokee
County Fire Chief, Tim Prather, Assistant Fire Chief, Eddie Robinson and Sgt. Scott Deal who encouraged
the graduating seniors to make good decisions in life and to keep up the great work. Plus, the chiefs told the
new officers that they had faith in their leadership and they have “big boots to fill.”
Cadet Lt. Cheyenne Gurley spoke on behalf of herself and the other seniors that completed the program
this year. She spoke about how much she has seen her peers, herself, and this explorer post change for the
better over the past several years. Gurley then challenged the new officers to keep
raising the bar and to always represent Cherokee Fire and Emergency Services with
pride and professionalism.
The Explorer program is a co-educational program providing an
opportunity for young adults to explore a particular career field. The
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Explorers Post provide an
opportunity for young adults to get a hands-on introduction to fire and
emergency services. They hold regular meetings and training events,
ride fire trucks and participate in emergency incidents under the
supervision of their advisors, senior firefighters and others.
For more information about Fire Explorers Post #469, contact Lead
Advisor, Michael Sims, at (678) 644 -1377.
The ceremony was attended by numerous parents, advisors and fellow
explorers.

The Fire Wire
Swimming Pools Safety Tips
Page 8
Each year, an estimated 260 children under five years of age drown in residential swimming pools and spas.
Estimates indicate that another 3,000 children under age five are treated in hospital emergency rooms
following submersion accidents each year. Some of these submersion accidents result in permanent brain
damage.
Nationally, drowning is the fourth leading cause of death to children under five. In some states such as
California, Florida and Arizona, drowning is the leading cause of accidental death to children under five.
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services offers the following tips for pool owners:
•Never leave a child unsupervised near a pool.
•Instruct babysitters about potential hazards to young children in and around swimming pools
and the need for constant supervision.
•Completely fence the pool. Install self-closing and self-latching gates. Position latches out of
reach of young children. Keep all doors and windows leading to the pool area secure to prevent
small children from getting to the pool. Effective barriers and locks are necessary preventive
measures, but there is no substitute for supervision.
Do not consider young children “drown proof” because they have had swimming lessons; young children
should always be watched carefully while swimming.
•Do not use flotation devices as a substitute for supervision.
•Never use a pool with its pool cover partially in place, since children may become entrapped
under it. Remove the cover completely.
•Place tables and chairs well away from the pool fence to prevent children from climbing into the
pool area.
•Keep toys away from the pool area because a young child playing with the toys could
accidentally fall in the water.
•Remove steps to above ground pools when not in
use.
•Have a telephone at poolside to avoid having to
leave children unattended in or near the pool to
answer a telephone elsewhere. Keep
emergency numbers at the poolside telephone.
•Learn CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation).
•Keep rescue equipment by the pool.
Be safe around the pool this summer!