By Dave Baumeister
County Correspondent
SIOUX FALLS – The county’s fire chiefs were all in attendance at the March 19 meeting of the Minnehaha County Commission for a presentation on the local Office of Emergency Management and the area’s volunteer fire departments.
First up, Emergency Management Director Jason Gearman went over various aspects of his office and emphasized that things have been fairly quiet on the emergency-front in the county.
He said that since Covid in 2020 and 2021, the office has seen fewer large emergencies. Although just prior to that in 2018 and 2019, he saw more than his share.
Soon after Gearman stated the job as EM director, the county saw flooding, derechos, and tornadoes.
Since he didn’t have to go over major emergency situations from 2023, Gearman was able to focus on the roles of volunteers with his office.
Police Reserve: This is an all-volunteer force of around 40 men and women who assist local law enforcement agencies in providing extra patrols for special events.
To be in the Reserve, members need to volunteer for a minimum of eight hours each month. In past year, those in the Police Reserve donated over 9,000 hours of free service to the county, according to Gearman.
Rescue Squad: A group with 16 members, the Rescue Squad assists local fire departments with search and rescue and other EMS duties, as well as working with traffic control and severe weather response.
Dive Team: 14 people comprise the county’s Dive Team. These volunteers dive in the area’s bodies of water for evidence, property and body recovery. They also complete “ice dives” when recovery is needed during winter months.
One opportunity next month for new volunteers is the 2024 Severe Weather Training.
At 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 23 at the Washington Pavilion, 301 S. Main St, Sioux Falls, people can become “weather spotters and learn about National Weather Service products, weather safety, other weather fundamentals, and communication reporting,” Gearman said.
This training is free of charge and open to the public without advanced pre-registration.
And Gearman also talked about other training opportunities, because, he added, there is always a need for more volunteers.
Anyone wanting to volunteer should contact Gearman or anyone at the Office of Emergency Management at 605-367-4345.
Fire fighting
Mike Harstad, president of the Minnehaha County Rural Fire Chiefs’ Association also told commissioners about the importance of volunteers.
Chiefs from various volunteer fire departments were on hand at the meeting when Harstad referred to the 4,000 volunteer firefighters and 2,000 EMS volunteers in the county.
These numbers represent the rural departments outside of major city departments.
One difference over the past year, is the changing of the Minnehaha County Mutual Aid agreement to the Southeast Metro Mutual Aid Agreement.
Harstad explained that this reflects mutual aid from other departments who now work with neighboring counties in South Dakota, Minnesota and Iowa.
“We couldn’t do this without our neighbors,” Harstad said.
The next commission meeting will be at 9 a.m. Tuesday, March 26, in the third-floor meeting room of the Minnehaha County Administration Building at 6th and Minnesota in Sioux Falls
