The Texas Fire Chief’s Association selected Sugar Land Fire Chief Dannie Smith as Texas Fire Chief of the Year. Citing numerous accomplishments at the state and local level, Smith received the prestigious award during a TFCA
ceremony.
Smith’s 25-years of public safety expertise – both as a decorated firefighter and public safety executive – includes five years as Sugar Land’s fire chief and 20 years with the Houston Fire Department, where Smith earned two medals of valor for risking his life to save others. His
last assignment at HFD was assistant fire chief for special operations.
Judges cited Smith’s leadership in several SLFD achievements:
• Haz-Mat Team: Sugar Land led an effort to create the East Fort Bend Hazardous Materials Response Team. The team – based in Sugar Land and staffed with Sugar Land firefighters – serves a 13-county area.
•Advanced Lifesaving Skills: SLFD now has firefighters on every truck with EMT-I/Paramedic certification. This certification enables firefighters to administer certain drugs and IVs and create artificial breathing pathways. As firefighters are the first responders in an emergency
situation, they now can provide immediate advanced medical attention prior to the arrival of ambulance emergency medical personnel. The program was implemented through a staff reallocation that resulted in a 50 percent reduction of overtime expenses.
• Managing Growth: SLFD opened Fire Station 6 and is planning for Fire Station 7. In addition, a strategic fire station location plan was conducted for the community.
• Grant Funding: More than $1 million in grant funding has enabled the department to expand haz-mat services and address homeland security issues.
• Community Emergency Response Teams: The Sugar Land Fire Department graduated Fort Bend County’s first Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) to respond to emergencies within neighborhoods. Utilizing training provided by members of the Sugar Land Fire and Police Departments and
coordinated with the Fort Bend County Office of Emergency Management, Sugar Land’s CERT teams support first responders, provide immediate assistance to victims and organize volunteers at a disaster site.
• All Hazards Incident Management Team: Sugar Land’s All Hazards Incident Management Team (AHIMT) received initial training to prepare for rapid deployment to major disasters throughout the state. Using a nationally-recognized command and control structure, the team was created to
organize and direct the safe response to any disaster.
On a state level, Smith spearheaded legislation that created the Texas Intrastate Fire Mutual Aid System, a plan that sets guidelines for responding to fire-related disasters that exceed the resources of local agencies. The plan provides a systematic, uniformed system for agencies
to share assets when large-scale regional responses exceed local resources. The initiative was a direct response to the challenges experienced during previous disasters such as Hurricane Katrina.
