Vision

"Some men see things as they are and ask "Why?" I dream of things that could be and ask "Why not?"
---Robert F. Kennedy

Volusia County Fire Services has adopted a Vision Statement which is intended to describe the end state for what we are trying to accomplish. The Vision Statement's purpose is to help focus our efforts and achieve the goals of our Strategic Plan.

"Our Vision is to be the preferred provider of emergency services throughout the community we serve; receiving the full support of that community. We will be recognized as a proactive and influential leader at the local, state and national level."

This vision statement indicates we want our organization to be recognized by our citizens for its excellence. We know that we must exceed their expectations, without fail, if we are to receive their continued support. We also desire to be recognized for excellence by our peers here in Volusia County, within the State of Florida and throughout the United States.

If we are to realize our vision it is important that we have a clear picture of the organization we want to become. It is not enough to just say we want to be the best organization of our kind anywhere in the world. We need to be much more specific. The following paragraphs are intended to provide the necessary level of specificity and to paint a clear picture of the organization we visualize in our future.

Our organization will provide fire suppression, emergency medical services, technical rescue and hazardous materials response capability on a daily basis. We will also integrate within our operational capabilities the ability to respond effectively to aircraft emergencies, rail emergencies, terrorist incidents and mass casualty emergencies. We will be prepared for hurricanes, tornadoes, wildfire and other potential emergencies and prepare our organization to be response capable as deemed appropriate for any identified type of potential incident.

We are preparing our personnel as all hazard emergency managers as opposed to the traditional fire managers. It is our intention to pursue advanced level Incident Command certification for all our leadership personnel as well as to have them become Certified Emergency Managers. We will seek to develop a permanent Field Operations Center for managing major Volusia County Fire Services incidents and also for coordinating Area Command Operations of county-wide incidents.

Volusia County Fire Services is a combination volunteer/career fire department and will continue as such. A combination fire department offers the best option for our citizens. A proper balance of career and volunteer personnel will ensure a rapid and reliable response to emergencies day to day and provides the ability to deal effectively with the more complex emergencies, which demand a larger response force while keeping costs at a minimum.

Our Organization is much more than an emergency response agency. We will make use of technology and proactive community risk reduction programs to improve the safety of our citizens. Fire prevention and injury prevention will become a significant component of our efforts. We will seek every opportunity to provide services that reduce the risk of death or injury to people living, working and visiting in Volusia County.

We will maintain high standards of training for all personnel, volunteer and career, to ensure our citizens receive professional service at all times. Volusia County Fire Services maintains a state certified training facility located on twelve acres of ground. This facility has a modern classroom and office building, a multistory training tower, a burn building, propane fire simulator, automobile extrication area and other various training props, fire apparatus and equipment. We will continue to expand and improve our training facility in an effort to provide first class training to our personnel.

Daytona Beach Community College and Volusia County Fire Services entered into a formal partnership agreement on August 15, 1996. The partnership allows us to combine the strength of the college (registration, curriculum development, scheduling) with the use of the fire training resources of our organization. This permits the sharing of services and resources and eliminates duplication, thereby reducing costs. We intend to expand the scope of services offered through this partnership in an effort to make our combined fire training and education program the finest in the state. Ultimately, we intend to further reduce or eliminate the cost to our citizens of providing training. We hope to offer extensive training and educational services at a marketable cost creating enough of a new revenue source to cover the costs of our training center and programs.

We will make use of appropriate technology so Volusia County Fire Services operates at high levels of effectiveness and efficiency. The use of computer technology during emergency operations will be pursued to allow real time sharing of information. We will continue to work closely with other county agencies and outside organizations to make effective use of Geographic Information Systems (G.I.S.) and related databases. We will utilize Global Positioning System technology to track the location and monitor the status of personnel and vehicles to provide high quality service and maximum safety for our personnel.

Volusia County Fire Services will play a major role in the changing emergency service delivery system within our county, region and the state of Florida. We will provide the leadership, scope of services and necessary resources to ensure effective delivery of services anywhere in the county during extraordinary emergencies and to assist anywhere in the state when needed.

Our members are our organization. Without them we would not exist. The qualities and capabilities of our organization are a reflection of the qualities and capabilities of our members. We will invest in and encourage the professional development of all our members. We will make Volusia County Fire Services the best organization of its kind anywhere in the world.