Fire Wire - Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services

The Fire Wire
Cherokee County Office of Fire and Emergency Services
150 Chattin Drive, Canton, Georgia 30115 • (678) 493-4000
July - August Volume 9 - Issue 4
Cherokee County Firefighters Jump at the
Chance to Learn Water Rescue Training
Story on page 7

The Fire Wire
Published bi-monthly by the
Cherokee County Office of Fire
and Emergency Services
Raymond Gunnin
Fire Chief
The Fire Wire
First Officer’s Forum Held
Page 2
Tim Cavender
Editor
Tim Prather
Assistant Fire Chief
Eddie Robinson
Training Division Chief
Rick Ruh
Fire Marshal
Kevin Botts
Support Services Manager
Jill Mabley, M.D.,FACEP
Medical Director
Cherokee County Fire Chief, Raymond Gunnin, speaks to over 100
employees at the first Officer’s Forum.
On April 13th, 2011, Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services
held its first Officers Forum.
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 Cherokee
County firefighter, Clay
Baxter, jumps into Lake
Allatoona to begin his Water
Rescue Training.
Details of the event
on page 8
According to Capt. Shane West, the coordinator of the Officer’s Forum,
“The Officers Forum is designed to promote positive communication
skills, improve the dissemination of information, enhance leadership
and provide quality training and education throughout all levels of the
organization.”
“The 1st Officers Forum was a huge success with 103 personnel in
attendance. The information the command staff delivered was well
received and several field personnel had the opportunity to ask the
command staff questions that were important to them individually,”
added West.
Capt. West does encourage on-duty personnel to attend, but
personnel must obtain approval from their perspective Battalion Chief.
The first two Officer Forum’s were held at the building located on the
site of the new Training Complex and the last forum was held at the
Cherokee Administrative Offices located at The Bluffs near Canton.
Captain West also stated that the next Officer’s Forum is scheduled for
July 6th, 2011 and will be held at The Bluffs. The meeting will be held
in the large room located on the ground floor and will start promptly at
9 o’clock.

The Fire Wire
Page 3
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services
Honored by the Department of Defense
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services was recently
honored with an ‘Above and Beyond’ Award in recognition of
their support to their employees who serve in the Georgia
National Guard and Army Reserve. The presentation was
made by the Georgia Employer Support of the Guard and
Reserve (GA ESGR), an agency of the Department of
Defense, at their Annual Awards Banquet at the Macon Marriott
City Center.
The ‘Above and Beyond’ Award is given in limited numbers
and presented annually by the GA ESGR to those employers
who go above and beyond the requirements of the federal
law in supporting their Reserve Component employees.
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services provides
outstanding support with pay differential to offset the loss of
wages, and extension of health care benefits which
Eddie Robinson, Training Chief for Cherokee
County Fire and Emergency Services, receives
the award from the Georgia Employer Support
of the Guard and Reserve.
Did You Know.....
The National Guard, the oldest component
of the Armed Forces of the United States
and one of the nation’s longest-enduring
institutions, will celebrate its 375th birthday
on December 13, 2011.
complement coverage provided by the military when their
employees are mobilized. According to Training Chief, Eddie
Robinson, who accepted the award on behalf of the fire
department, “We are fortunate that our Board of
Commissioners support our employees who serve in the
Georgia National Guard and Reserve. Their dedication to
these employees shows their willingness to help those who
are fighting for the freedoms that we enjoy in this great country.”
Robinson also recognized the employees of the fire
department who are always willing to help the families of their
co-workers who have spouses that are serving overseas.
As the 1.3 million members of the National Guard and
Reserve continue to perform an increasing number of
unique missions with America’s borders and beyond, ESGR
will continue to be the resource for the employers of citizen
warriors. ESGR provides education, consultation, and if
necessary mediation for employers of Guard and Reserve
employees.

The Fire Wire
Page 4
Join The Fire Corps
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services is
currently recruiting volunteers for the Fire Corps
program. The Fire Corps program was launched in
2004 in effort to help departments face increasing
demands. Fire Corps mission is to increase the
capacity of departments through the use of
community volunteers in non-emergency roles. Nonemergency
volunteers allow departments to expand
their services, such as enhancing fire prevention
programs and public outreach.
Capt. Bill Hamby (center) and Sgt. Babette Davis
(right) speak to Cherokee County Fire Chief,
Raymond Gunnin, about the Fire Corps.
Volunteers can help provide services that the public
wants but that responders may not have time to
furnish. All activities of the fire corps are nonemergency
support roles.
Fire Corps falls under the umbrella of Citizen Corps
nationally.
Fire Corps programs help Fire & EMS departments by utilizing volunteers for non-emergency support
functions allowing emergency personnel to concentrate on their core duties of emergency response.
Fire Corps volunteers can provide many services including: Installing smoke alarms and other fire
prevention activities, inventory and record keeping, fire and life safety education to people of all ages,
newsletter and web page development, fundraising, grant writing, public relations and outreach and much
more!
If you are interested in learning more about the Cherokee County Fire Corps program contact Babette Davis
at bdavis@cherokeega.com or call (770) 721-7809 or Captain Bill Hamby at whamby@cherokeega.com or
call (678) 493-6291. Plus, there will be an informative meeting on the Fire Corps on Monday, August 1st,
2011 at the Cherokee County Administration Building, located at 1130 Bluffs Parkway in Canton, Georgia
beginning at 6:30 pm.
Come Be A
Part of Us!

The Fire Wire
Page 5
Chief Prather Walks in the Fight Against Cancer
Cherokee County Assistant Fire Chief, Tim Prather,
recently participated in the Relay for Life in Pickens
County.
The American Cancer Society Relay for Life is a lifechanging
event that gives everyone in communities
across the globe a chance to celebrate the lives of
people who have battled cancer, remember loved
ones lost, and fight back against the disease. At
Relay, teams of people camped out at a local high
school, park, or fairground and take turns walking or
running around a track or path. Each team is asked
to have a representative on the track at all times
during the event. Because cancer never sleeps,
Relays are overnight events up to 24 hours in length.
Cherokee County Assistant Fire Chief, Tim Prather,
holds his certificate for receiving the “Most Individual
Paper Clips.”
According to Chief Prather, “I exceeded my goal. My
goal was 100 laps and I completed 102 laps. One
lap was approximately 1,627 feet, so Chief Prather
walked a total distance of over 31 miles. I began at 2
o’clock on Saturday with 10 lap blocks and approximately
30 minute breaks in between. I completed 60
by midnight. However, sometime around 3 am, I had
refigured and realized that I could not complete the
goal by the deadline by 6 o’clock Sunday morning.
So, the last two blocks had to be increased to 15
laps with only a 15 minute break,” added Prather.
Chief Prather completed lap 100 at 5:47 Sunday
morning, only 13 minutes shy of the 6 o’clock deadline.
Hi total walk time was just over 9 hours.
Cherokee County firefighter, Tim Milburn, also participated in the event and completed 50 laps. “We sat
down for approximately 45 minutes and had a hard time getting back up. Some of us dozed off for a few
minutes. Sunday was a bad day. I was hurting pretty bad in my calves and feet. But, I did not blister. I carried
several changes of socks and rotated shoes between blocks to prevent the blistering. But, the aching, I
could not prevent”, continued Prather.
During each lap, team members were to pick up a paper clip to keep up with the amount of laps completed.
Chief Prather received the award for “Most Individual Paper Clips” during an awards program last week.
Prather also said, “Overall, it was a blast. Our team is already looking forward to next year's Relay for Life
now that we know what to expect. I believe our team will also receive the award for the most "team" laps
walked. I would like to thank the local fire department union for their donation in sponsoring my participation
in this walk. As we all know, it does go to a good cause. “

The Fire Wire
Page 6
Firefighters Participate in Safety Town
Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services
visited children in June who participated in Safety
Town at Bascomb Elementary School. Safety Town
is a week long experience and features a pint-sized
town where comprehensive safety messages are
taught by safety professionals to kindergarten age
children. Each day they learned a different safety
message.
Along with pedestrian and traffic safety, the innovative
curriculum included poison prevention, water
safety, playground safety, animal safety, stranger
awareness, bicycle safety, school bus safety, and
more. Safety Town's goal is to help children recognize
hazardous situations and react to them. Children
have "hands-on" learning while riding through
the Safety Town streets along with singing safety
songs, playing safe games, coloring and participating
in other activities designed around safety.
A Cherokee County Fire Explorer, dressed in full
turn-out gear, shows the children the importance of
never being afraid of a firefighter.
One the last day of Safety Town, the subject was fire
safety and Cherokee County firefighters were on
hand to teach the children some important safety
tips. Children were entertained by Freddie the Fire
Truck and also watched a fireman put on his turnout
gear. They also received a tour of a fire truck and
learned about fire safety while experiencing the Fire
Safety House. The Fire Safety House is a mockeddown,
split-level version of a private home on a
trailer. Infused with theatrical smoke to simulate reallife
fire conditions, participants practice effective fire
evacuation techniques in a realistic setting.
Debi Radcliff, one of the directors of Safety Town,
said, “This is the ninth year that we have presented
Safety Town to the children of Cherokee County.
When we first started, we had 42 children who
participated in the program. This year, we did the
program for three weeks and had over 210 children
to participate.” Since Safety Town began in 2002,
approximately 1,500 children in Cherokee County
have gone through the week long safety program.
Safety Town was held three times this year during
the month of June. To learn more about Safety
Town, visit their website at
www.cherokeecountysafetytown.org
Cherokee County firefighter, Paul Faulkner, shows
the kids of Safety Town some of the tools that
firefighters use to fight fire.

The Fire Wire
Page 7
Evans Retires After 21 Years
Cherokee County firefighter, Sgt. Jimmy Evans,
was recognized on May 11th, at the Officer’s
Forum that was held today at the Fire Training
Complex near Holly Springs, due to his upcoming
retirement from the fire department.
Cherokee County Fire Chief, Raymond Gunnin
(left), and Assistant Fire Chief, Tim Prather (right),
honor Jimmy Evans for his 21 years of service to
the citizens of Cherokee County.
Cherokee County Fire Chief, Raymond Gunnin,
thanked Evans for his service to the citizens of
Cherokee County. According to Gunnin, “Jimmy
was hired on as a mechanic and he worked on
the engines at Station 20.” Assistant Fire Chief,
Tim Prather, and Training Chief, Eddie Robinson,
also shared some funny stories about Evan’s
career with the department. Evans was presented
with a “bugle” award today in front of a
crowd of his peers. The bugle or speaking trumpet
is a reference to a megaphone like device
that was used in the early days of the fire service.
Evans began his career with Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services on March 5th, 1990. His
last shift with the department will be this coming Saturday. We wish Jimmy many happy years of
retirement!
Volunteer Firefighters Run for Ashley
Volunteers from the Holly Spring Fire Department
participated in the 6th Annual Holly Springs Memorial
Day 5K and Fun Run that was held on Saturday,
May 28th.
The volunteer firefighters not only ran the race, but
assited in helping a 27 year old young man to participate
in the run, too. Ashley Bryant, son of Wendy
Bryant, has cerebral palsy and is confined to a
wheelchair. Joe Tkacsik, senior builder for the city of
Holly Springs, came up with the idea to have Ashley
participate in the race this year. Tkacsik and Bryant
met in 2008 at another charity race and, since then,
the two have participated in numerous other races.
The race began at Holly Springs Elementary School
with Tkacsik pushing Ashley in his wheelchair. Approximately
every half-mile, other runners, including
members of the volunteer fire department, took over
Wendy Bryant pushes her son, Ashley, in the Holly
Springs Memorial Day 5K and Fun Run.
the pushing for Ashley. The race ended at Barrett
Park in Holly Springs.

The Fire Wire
Page 8
Cherokee County Firefighters Take to the Water
Cherokee County firefighters head to Lake Allatoona
during the first week of June to do more than
enjoying time on the lake. The firefighters went
through an extensive water rescue training event to
help them be better prepared during an emergency
at the lake.
According to Lt. Robbie Kennedy, a Fire Training
Officer with Cherokee County Fire and Emergency
Services, “We covered boat maneuvering, driving
and maneuvering our two rescue boats, boat trailer
maneuvering, limited contact rescues, personal
flotation device safety, and rescue rope throw bag
operations.”
All in all, Cherokee County firefighters received
about 8 hours in the classroom and 10 hours of
practical application training.
The Water Rescue Training came in handy a couple
of weeks later when Cherokee County firefighters
responded to a gentleman who had been injured on
Lake Allatoona.
According to Lt. Rick Baechtal, “The four of us
(firefighters) proceeded down river and were with the
patient within 8 minutes of dispatch. We arrived to
find a young male floating next to a powerboat. It
seems he had suffered head and back injuries and
was in extreme pain. He was also hypothermic and
starting to shake uncontrollably due to being in the
water motionless.”
A Cherokee County firefighter reaches for a rescue
rope throw bag.
“Sgt. Michael Poulson and firefighter Michael Sims
entered the water, with Sims assuming C-spine. The
patient was placed onto a backboard and then into
the stokes basket. We soon had him loaded on
Boat-22 and proceeded back to shore,” added
Baechtal. The patient was later transported in an
ambulance to Marietta’s Kennestone Hospital.
Baechtal also expressed his pride in being involved
in this incident and commended each team member
who performed this rescue in a manner the citizens
and our department can be proud of.
Wear It!
It Could SAVE Your Life!