New fire manager in Whanganui
Whanganui’s new fire chief is hoping to educate the public about the dangers of fires, while leading firefighters through an organisational change.
Gary Ward has been appointed as the Whanganui fire area manager after spending the past nine months acting in the position following the retirement of Bernie Rush in 2016.
Prior to that, he had been the assistant area manager in Whanganui since 2009.
Ward said his priority in the role was going to be focusing on community and educating the public about the dangers of fire and reducing the level of risk of fires occurring.
‘‘There will be a strong focus on developing our personnel and keeping them safe so that we can maintain and enhance the level of service that we provide to our communities.’’
The Whanganui area included 14 fire stations with the area stretching from Bulls to Taumarunui.
This included a number of rural stations, which would be changing with the formation of Fire and Emergency New Zealand on July 1, as there would be a merger between Rural Fire Authorities and New Zealand Fire Service.
‘‘This is a really exciting time to lead the firefighters and personnel within our area,’’ Ward said.
Prior to working in Whanganui, Ward had been in Palmerston North, but had more than 30 years of fire service experience.
He had worked in the Western Fire Region office in Palmerston North, as well as working in a national training role in Wellington and as a trainer in Auckland.
‘‘My career has given me the privilege of serving in a range of different roles, including president of the New Zealand branch of the Institution of Fire Engineers, chief fire officer of the Feilding Volunteer Fire Brigade [and] a volunteer at Waiatarua Volunteer Fire Brigade in Auckland.’’
Ward took up the new appointment at the end of May.