Officially sworn in Wednesday, Chief Daren Burrier is ready to assume command of the Guam Fire Department.

During the ceremony, he noted he was ready for the journey and the challenges that come with it. One of those challenges is maintaining GFD’s fleet of ambulances.

“The fleet is aging and the preventative maintenance is ongoing all the time. We have one unit going up and another unit going down. It's been a matter of a revolving door maintaining the ambulances,” said Burrier.

They are continuously addressing the issues and working on solutions to maintain a ready response. As of today, they have six in operation.

“We have another one in the shop now, getting a coolant leak addressed, and struts put back on it in order to keep it more stable for travel,” said Burrier. “That should be back online today or by the end of next week. We have another one that is getting a transmission replaced, they're working on that now which we hope comes online next week also.”

Burrier adds that the Leon Guerrero-Tenorio Administration has been supportive.

“They were able to help us in addressing and getting us four new ambulances procured and those are being built now at the manufacturer, and we hope to see them by the mid-part of this year,” said Burrier.

This will eventually bring the total to 12.

In the meantime, mutual aid agreements with the Department of Defense are in place to provide support during high-demand periods if need be and they also run a two-tiered system

“We have these emergency medical technicians and we have paramedics in our ALS unit. By having EMTs, all firefighters are EMTs so no matter if they are on the truck, there in the prevention unit or rescue unit or hazmat- they can respond to a medical emergency and provide treatment and maintain and stabilize the patient and if its a more critical case, there is a paramedic unit. That can give advance care at the scene,” added Burrier.

Burrier reiterated that GFD's mission is clear: To respond swiftly and effectively to emergencies, delivering lifesaving medical services.

They remain steadfast in their commitment to the safety and well-being of the community.