Nichols promoted to fire chief

NEW CHIEF: Battalion Chief Howard Fincher, left, applauds as the board of the Anderson Fire Protection District announces the promotion of Andy Nichols, right, to fire chief. Both Fincher and Nichols applied for the chief position.

Andy Nichols, 48, was appointed fire chief of the Anderson Fire Protection District by its board at a special meeting Monday, Sept. 14. For the chief position, the board chose between hiring then-Deputy Chief Nichols, hiring Battalion Chief Howard Fincher, or advertising for candidates outside the district.

"Andy has been here 10 years, and he has a lot of experience," board chairman Keith Webster said. "Howard (Fincher) and Andy will divide some responsibilities and work well together."

"I'm thrilled to do it," Nichols said. "It's a huge step, though. It's a big challenge for me that I'm looking forward to. The district has been operating well, I want to continue it."

Webster said salary particulars were not available until Nichols and the district settle on a contract for the chief's position. Webster and board member Marsha Kelley both said it would be less than the $83,000 per year plus benefits made by Joe Piccinini, who resigned from the fire chief position on July 1.

By leaving Nichols' previous position, deputy fire chief, vacant, Webster said the district could now move forward with hiring three additional firefighters, a long-stated goal of the district.

"It's probably the biggest step the district has taken since I've been here," Nichols said. "That will allow us to have two people on an engine at any given time."

With the increased staffing, AFPD can meet "two in, two out" OSHA safety standards with the arrival of a second engine. In order to enter a burning building, two firefighters must go in together while two more are on standby outside the building for rescue.

On previous occasions, AFPD could afford to send only one fire fighter on an engine, requiring a third responder to meet the "two in, two out" guidelines.

To suit the increase in fire fighters, the personnel structure of the district will change from three chief-level managers and three captains to two chiefs, three captains, and three fire fighters. The district will also drop from six to three paid seasonal fire fighters.

To afford the increased staffing, Nichols said the district will realize about $83,000 savings from the base pay of previous fire chief Joe Piccinini and an additional $43,000 savings from the reduction in seasonal fire fighters. The combined $126,000 would pay for the three additional fire fighters' base salaries, at $10 per hour, and still provide the district with a savings of $36,000.

Nichols said job descriptions for the new fire fighter hires would be presented to the district's Oct. 13 meeting.

In 2007, Piccinini was hired instead of Nichols by the fire district with Nichols coming in third during that interview process out of ten finalists, Webster said.

"The district has always promoted from within until we hired Piccinini," Webster said.

Piccinini resigned from the fire chief position following a district investigation into Piccinini's management practices.

"There's something to be said for knowing the person you are hiring as fire chief. We've known (Nichols) for ten years. Now a couple years have past, and we believe it doesn't make sense to have three chiefs, hire from outside and fire one of our own," Webster said.

"The board made a wise decision in the best interest of the district (in hiring Nichols)," Battalion Chief/Fire Marshall Howard Fincher said.

"It's a good appointment," said district volunteer and former fire chief Don Matheson, who originally hired Nichols in 2000. "Andy is probably the hardest working individual I've ever worked with. He was easy to train on budgets. I only had to explain things once for him to understand."

From resuscitating a newborn baby in a Shasta Outlets bathroom in 2007, to spending 30 days away from home at last years Shasta Lightning Complex, to his first time as Incident Commander during the City Grill fire in Anderson in September 2004, Nichols said he learns just as much from the memorable events to the little ones.

A 1979 Anderson Union High School graduate, Nichols began his career in fire service in 1980 as a volunteer fireman in the Cloverdale district. His father-in-law, Larry Russell, was a Cloverdale fireman and Nichols joined him. The Happy Valley Fire Protection District eventually annexed the Cloverdale District, and Nichols volunteers in the Happy Valley district still.

He also married in 1980 and bought the 10-acre ranch on which he still lives today.

Nichols began working at the Anderson Fire Protection District in 2000. He also began a timber falling business, which he still operates today, called Quality Timber Falling. He employs 13 people full-time, he said.

Nichols worked his way through the ranks in the Anderson district and served as interim fire chief for four months between Matheson's retirement in 2006 and the hiring of Interim Fire Chief Roy Del Carlo. Under Del Carlo, Nichols worked as fire marshal.

Nichols again took up the reigns as acting fire chief when Piccinini was placed on leave May 12, 2009.