The Wake Forest Fire Department is celebrating its centennial year and making sure it is one to remember.
Image courtesy of Facebook, NC Department of Insurance (NCDOI)
Just months ago, the Department earned the coveted Class 1 Public Protection Classification rating by the Insurance Services Office (ISO). Wake Forest is now one of only 18 towns in North Carolina (out of 1,220 communities) to earn a Class 1 ISO rating. Prior to the most recent review, the department was rated at a 4. “Jumping from a 4 to 1 is basically unheard of,” says Ron Early, Fire Chief of the Wake Forest Fire Department. This is the third time a snapshot has been done to determine the rating since Early has been Chief. “With the amount of projects, programs, people, and trucks that we’ve purchased over the last 10 years, it’s made a big difference in the ISO.”
Early shared the ISO is something most people have never heard of. However, “you’ll know it when you see your homeowner’s insurance rate reduce–that’s when most people understand the why.”
Jason Cannon, President of the Wake Forest Business and Industry Partnership, sums up the economic impact a Class 1 rating holds for the community. “This represents a meaningful reduction in insurance rates for our commercial and industrial building owners as well as residential properties. Class 1 ISO tells our community and potential newcomers that our first responders are some of the best in the state. Settling in Wake Forest is not only an economically sound move but a safe one as well.”
In short, the ISO program evaluates the effectiveness of fire mitigation services in communities. “Several things go into it,” Early explains. He says there’s a water component. There’s also an evaluation of the 911 dispatch center. Both of these components are handled by the city of Raleigh or Wake County as a whole. “The last piece is the actual department. How many trucks does the department have to serve not only the town but the rural district of the county as well? How many people do we have? How many people can we put on-scene of a structure fire, plus training hours, fire prevention hours–there’s a long list of activities and things we have to do.” Early shares how engaging the community and consistently looking for ways to improve the fire department’s services is also part of how the ISO rating is determined.
Marshall training with his handler, Chief Blake
One such way recently came to fruition. The Wake Forest Fire Department now has an ignitable liquid detecting canine named Marshall trained and reporting for duty. His handler is Battalion Chief Jeremey Blake, who has been a certified fire investigator for over a decade.
Early explains how Chief Blake recently approached him with the idea for such a dog. “It’s an opportunity to not only serve Wake Forest, but the county, state, and maybe even federal level,” he says. “Blake thought it was time for us to step up to the next level, which meant to bring in a canine to assist him in what he does. For us, it will be a game-changer when we investigate fires. On the other hand, a dog like this is also a great tool for community outreach.”
Shortly after Marshall was publicly announced, the Department had many families from the community visit the station to meet him and saw a lot of traffic on its social media feeds to learn more about his role. “Each one of these things does help us in the ISO rating, but it also helps us engage the community,” says Early.
Marshall, Ignitable Liquid Detection Dog In-Training,WFFD
Marshall, a 16-month-old black Labrador from Bogota Colombia, had his first day of duty on February 7th. Unlike a police department with a common K9 unit, a dog with the specific skills Marshall has is rare. “The purpose of having a need for a dog at every department would be overkill,” says Early. “Having a dog to cover a region is more economical and practical. The animal can go anywhere. We will be in the ‘resource cache’ for anyone who needs us.”
Chief Blake, a Certified Fire Investigator (CFI) since 2016, spoke more on how he landed his new paw-tner. While attending CFI training in Myrtle Beach, there was a presentation about the use of canines. As someone who grew up with a father who trained canines for law enforcement, Blake knew after the presentation that being a handler for one of these specialized dogs was not only the next step in his career but a calling.
Chief Blake, Marshall, and Jerry Webster, CFI
After the conference, he spoke with Jerry Webster, a renowned Certified Fire Investigator with experience in how to utilize an ignitable liquid detection canine in a fire scene. Webster quickly connected Blake to Ken Mathias, who founded Orchard Knoll K9–America’s premier importer and trainer of world-class police dogs since 1983–located in Raleigh. Coincidentally, Mathias already knew of the perfect dog for Blake. Blake says it all happened so quickly, but couldn’t have fallen into place any better.
“Ken is pretty knowledgeable about kinds of dogs–their food drive, prey drive, or even love drive. The dog had to have the right mentality and personality, and had to be the right size that would work well while mitigating during a fire scene,” explains Blake. “I made it clear to Ken this dog was not just for liquids–it’s also to gain and maintain interest from kids.”
“It’s exciting,” says Blake. “When I first approached [Chief] Early, I thought it would take some time and we [the station] would have to get bigger. Early said ‘Nope, so long as you can support the reason.’ That was September. By November, Ken already had the dog in mind. I went to see the dog, and by December we purchased him and he’s been with me ever since.”
Blake explains that Marshall’s training is a lengthy process. “The dog first gets imprinted on a number of ignitable liquids. He responds to sit, meaning he’s ‘in-odor’ and that’s how he gets fed. He has to go through training in order to get fed.” Explaining that training is every day, Blake says, “I change it up so it’s practical for him. I put him in real-world scenarios.” Marshall will also have in-service training once a month and will have to recertify every year.
Marshall and Blake are together 24/7. A very calm and well-mannered dog, Marshall plays with the other firefighters at the station, greets visitors, and gets along well with his lab sibling at Blake’s home. When asked what is most exciting about this new endeavor, Blake says, “We’ll be able to go out and help other agencies and do it from here. For years, when we needed one [a dog] we had to call one in; now, we’re the resource for here and we can return the favor across the state and beyond.”
Working alongside his four-legged friend as a partner is “a lot of work, with an even greater reward,” says Blake. When asked if Marshall is the goodest boy, Blake chuckles. “He is, and that’s funny you ask that because that’s exactly what Ken says.”
