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Hill, Ubben promoted in Fort Dodge Fire Department

HillUbben

Two Fort Dodge firefighters were promoted by the City Council Monday evening.

Jeff Hill was promoted from lieutenant to captain.

Tom Ubben was promoted from firefighter to lieutenant.

Hill will fill the captain’s vacancy created when Steve Hergenreter was promoted to fire chief in July.

The new captain has been a city firefighter since Feb. 6, 2001. He was promoted to lieutenant in 2008.

In 2011, he received a letter of commendation from former Assistant Fire Chief Woody Wolf, who credited him with negotiating the agreement with UnityPoint Health — Trinity Regional Medical Center under which the Fire Department provides ambulance service to support the hospital’s ambulance service.

”That was a huge heavy lift to make that happen,” Hergenreter told the City Council Monday.

Hill is certified as a Firefighter II, paramedic, Fire Instructor I, hazardous materials technician and technical rescue technician.

In his new role, he will command a shift of 11 firefighters.

”I’m honored to have the opportunity to be a leader in this great department,” Hill said Monday evening.

Councilman Dean Hill, the new captain’s father, abstained and Councilman Dave Flattery was absent from the otherwise unanimous vote to promote him.

Ubben fills the lieutenant’s vacancy created by Hill’s promotion.

He has been a city firefighter since Dec. 2, 2011. He is certified as a Firefighter II, paramedic, Fire Instructor I, hazardous materials technician and technical rescue technician.

Ubben has served as the regional hazardous materials team coordinator since 2014.

His promotion was approved unanimously, with Flattery absent.

Hergenreter said the process to select Hill and Ubben for promotion was ”very intense.” Both passed written civil service exams. Then they took part in what Hergenreter called an ”assessment center” in which the fire chief of Mason City and fire department captains from Des Moines and Urbandale made them work through exercises in emergency scene command and personnel management.

Following the assessment center, they were interviewed by a panel that included Hergenreter, Assistant Fire Chief Lenny Sanders and Fire Department captains Paul Neeson and Steve Teske.

Related:

Traditions: Fort Dodge Fire Dept. promotes two of its own

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