Curry named university fire chief

Submitted by Carla Browning
Phone: (907) 474-7778
04/01/04

Edie Curry has been named fire chief for the University Fire Department (UFD) at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Curry has been in the fire service in Alaska since 1979 and joined the UFD in 1991. She has served as fire marshal, assistant chief, deputy chief and has been interim fire chief since April 2003. She oversaw university dispatch center operations from 1996-1999 and served as the director of UAF’s codes and safety department from 1999-2002. She is a certified fire officer, fire instructor and an emergency medical technician.

In 1984, Curry was the first woman hired as a deputy state fire marshal in the State of Alaska Department of Public Safety. In addition to her duties as a fire marshal and chief officer, Curry has specialized in fire and arson investigation and hazardous materials. She has served as a team leader for the state regional response hazmat teams and on the state Emergency Response Commission. She has been an instructor at UAF’s Tanana Valley Campus for more than 20 years and was the principal investigator for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Disaster Resistant University program, after UAF was selected as one of five pilot universities in the country. Curry has developed many of UAF’s emergency response procedures and is a first responder in the event of a crisis on campus.

The UFD serves the University Fire Service Area(UFSA), an area encompassing about 22 square miles both on and off campus, serving more than 20,000 residents. The department is one of only a handful in the nation providing highly technical training for student firefighters.

The dispatch center provides 24-hour enhanced 911 services for university fire and police and six volunteer fire departments and serves as an emergency operations center.

The fire department is under contract with the Fairbanks North Star Borough to provide fire protection to the UFSA, which is overseen by seven volunteer commissioners appointed by the borough mayor.

The Insurance Services Office (ISO) has given the fire department a class two rating, with one being the highest. The ISO rating is given after a rigorous review based on national standards in fire protection and helps to establish fire insurance premiums for homeowners.

Note to editors: A high-resolution jpg photo is available at http://www.uaf.edu/files/news/download/releasephotos/Curry_Edie.jpg.

CONTACT: Edie Curry, at (907) 474-7681 or Carla Browning, UAF public information officer at (907) 474-7778 or visit www.uaf.edu/fire/ for more information.