December 09, 2016

Rod Seals Appointed as Interim Fire Chief of RC Fire Department

Rod Seals, a 20-year veteran of the Rapid City Fire Department has been appointed interim fire chief by Rapid City Mayor Steve Allender. Rod Seals, a 20-year veteran of the Rapid City Fire Department has been appointed interim fire chief by Rapid City Mayor Steve Allender. (RC Fire Dept. Photo)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE/December 9, 2016

 

MAYOR ALLENDER SELECTS ROD SEALS AS INTERIM FIRE CHIEF Seals is Deputy Fire Chief with 20 years of Department Experience

 

 RAPID CITY--Rod Seals, a 20-year veteran of the Rapid City Fire Department, has been named interim chief of the department by Rapid City Mayor Steve Allender.

            Seals replaces Mike Maltaverne who announced his retirement last month effective today.  Maltaverne served with the Rapid City Fire Department for the past 26 years.  The mayor anticipates the selection process could take at least six months as he conducts a detailed analysis of the department.

            "With the retirement of an experienced firefighter and leader in Chief Mike Maltaverne, this is an opportunity to conduct a thorough review of the department," said Allender.  "Rod Seals brings the experience, knowledge and skills to direct the Rapid City Fire Department as interim chief during the review and during the time frame of the search process."

            Seals joined the Fire Department in 1995 and his most recent promotion was to the position of Deputy Fire Chief on November 1, 2015.  In his 20-year career, he has held the positions of Firefighter-Medic, Fire Lieutenant, Fire Captain, Battalion Chief and most recently, Assistant Chief-Fire Operations.   As Deputy Fire Chief, Seals was responsible for standards compliance, long range planning, budgeting, accreditation and developing long-range goals to meet the Department's mission of Prepare, Prevent, Protect.

            To determine a replacement, Mayor Allender indicates he is implementing a two-phase selection plan.  He is conducting interviews with fire department command staff, union representatives and other department members to analyze the overall health of the fire department, including insights into the fire department's current and future needs.   

            In addition, internal evaluations by department personnel will be conducted to assess workload distribution, placement of fire stations, the role of emergency medical services (EMS) within the fire service and other factors.  The mayor indicates he may also work with the Center for Public Safety Management to analyze how the Fire Department compares to existing and emerging best practices nationwide.

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