Sonora Fire Chief New Retiring
Sonora, CA— Sonora’s fire chief is retiring after ten years, and while leaving her post, she will remain in the Mother Lode.
Sonora Fire Chief Aimee New tells Clarke Broadcasting that she is stepping down as chief but will continue to work with the Chicken Ranch Casino Resort in Jamestown. Chief New will continue consulting on the new fire station being built on Nelson Road, off Chicken Ranch Road.
“Being able to help out with the building of their fire station, the specifications for their new fire engine that they have, and it’s just a beautiful facility that they have down there. So, it’s really exciting,” commented Chief New. “It’s not very often that you get the opportunity to try to help build something from the ground up. It’s really nice to have that opportunity.”
Chief New has been in the fire service for 32 years, getting her first job at 18. She began her tenure as Sonora’s chief in 2015, and city officials praised her for being instrumental in advancing fire safety initiatives, improving emergency response capabilities, and fostering strong relationships with residents and neighboring agencies. She says one of her biggest accomplishments was bringing in around $350,000 in SAFER grant money to the department, allowing three full-time fire engineers to be hired in less than ten years.
“There has been in excess of $2 million worth of grant funding that I’ve been able to secure for the fire department, which has bought the apparatus and staffed personnel. In 10 years to be able to bring our full-time staffing from four personnel to six personnel, I think, is a really big accomplishment.”
One of her most challenging times was defending the city from the flames of the Washington Fire, which scorched 136 acres and burned 19 structures, including 15 homes.
“That was my worst nightmare, coming to fruition with seeing that header right out the window of the fire station,” shared Chief New, adding, “Looking and blinking my eyes and thinking, wow, it could take out the downtown in a heartbeat. We were lucky that the winds were not prevailing from the southwest and so that gave everybody a chance with ground resources and air resources to get a handle on it, but it was definitely a frightful situation.”
At Monday’s City Council meeting, Chief New was honored for her leadership and experience that made her “the relied-upon resource by the City Council and Administration for emergency response and recovery efforts,” having played a crucial role in coordinating emergency and recovery efforts after the Washington Fire, as well as leading FEMA emergency response, recovery, and mitigation efforts for the January/March storms. She was also recognized for mentoring volunteers and interns to provide career development opportunities in the fire service. In return, Chief New expressed her appreciation, gratitude, and thanks to the community.
“I just think that this community comes together when there’s a big problem and everybody works together, and that is something you don’t find everywhere, especially in the state of California. So, I would just tell the community thank you for the opportunity to help the community be more fire safe, to provide the best emergency services that we can, and for their support over the last 10 years.”
