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ABOUT US
March 22, 2009 The Ruidoso Fire department was founded in 1948 as an all volunteer organization, with three trucks and one station initially, located in midtown. In 1966, the Village hired its first 3 paid firefighters. Today, the Department has 16 vehicles positioned at three main stations and two substations. The main station is at 541 Sudderth Avenue, Ruidoso, New Mexico 88345. It employs 31 full time employees and six volunteers. There have been two paid fire chiefs since the department was founded: Virgil Reynolds from 1981 to 2007, and Thomas M. Gavin, 2008-present. The Ruidoso Fire Department is organized into four divisions: Administrative, Operations, Prevention and Training, and Emergency Management. The department is a diverse organization and it serves the Village of Ruidoso in many ways, including fire suppression (wildland and structural), rescue, HAZMAT, EMS, fire prevention, investigation and inspection, prescribed burning and code enforcement. The Emergency Management Division coordinates and manages all non-fire emergencies that threaten the Village such as catastrophic flood, weather, earthquakes and all forms of terrorism. The department at presently averages 1500 calls per year of an all risk nature. The present Insurance Services Office rating for the department in six. The Department protects 16,000 acres of (heavily forested) wildlands, interspersed with densely populated subdivisions within the city limits, of which supports an estimated 28,000 structures. The Village of Ruidoso is designated as a FIREWISE community but has also been rated nationally as the second highest “at risk from wildfire” municipality within the United States. As a result, there is extensive cooperation between the Fire and Forestry Departments as it relates to the reduction of hazardous fuel accumulations within the VOR administrative boundaries. The Department is a member of the New Mexico State Fire Service under the New Mexico State Fire Marshal’s Office. The Department is also an affiliate of the International Association of Fire Chiefs and both the New Mexico Firefighters and Fire Chiefs Associations under the State Municipal League. Over the years, there have been many alliances developed between the department and cooperating agencies. The Department works closely, and maintains formal agreements with the New Mexico State Forestry, the U.S. Forest Service, the Mescalero Apache Tribe, the Lincoln County Emergency Medical Service, Lincoln County Fire Services and the City of Ruidoso Downs Department of Public Safety. Firefighters that are employed by the department are certified in structural firefighting by the International Fire Service Accreditation College and by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group in wildland firefighting. In additional, all members of the department have been licensed by the State of New Mexico, at a minimum level of Emergency Medical Technician Basic. The department requires that all members maintain a diverse array of certifications and licenses as well as arduous physical training requirements. In addition, many members of the department hold advance certifications in various disciplines.
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