New Fire Chief Randy Rankin said he wants to improve the search-and-rescue capability of the Cayman Islands Fire Service while expanding and modernising the department.
Part of his vision for the service is to improve overall equipment and training.
“We obviously have the responsibility for search and rescue when it comes to a national disaster and we are up for that and we are ready to go at a moment’s notice, but I would like to see us get the training and equipment that’s required for a national response at that international professional level,” Rankin said in a recent interview with the Cayman Compass.
Rankin, who took up the office in August of this year after replacing Fire Chief Paul Walker upon the expiration of his contract, said he is excited in his new role.
Closing the ‘gap’
Rankin said he has asked the UK-based National Fire Chiefs Council for “a subject matter expert” to come over to assist with putting a plan in place by the first quarter next year for improving urban search and rescue.
Noting there is a “gap” in search and rescue, he said that the fire service is already addressing this issue, but he wants it to be taken to a level where Cayman attracts more people to be trained.
When it comes to shoreline search and rescue, Rankin said he expects the training of six more individuals to add to that team will start soon “so that we can keep that response level to the optimum”.
Vision of a hub for training
With 30-plus years of service under his belt, Rankin said he is ready to lead the Cayman Islands Fire Service into a new and modern chapter.
After being exposed to operations in the UK through his training, Rankin is looking to have Cayman “second to none”.
“We want to be top tier,” he said, when it comes to fire services, training and resources.
Rankin has commissioned the National Fire Chiefs Council to conduct a gap analysis for the service, to come up with a tiered framework, from one to five years, where the service can meet annual milestones in training and equipment.
“The idea again is to have persons trained within the Cayman Islands Fire Service to train our own people and certify them after that period of time. So we are looking at training the trainers,” he said.
The goal, he said, is within five years Cayman will be able to train people locally and within the region.
“God forbid if there’s a disaster in another Caribbean island, we can go over and assist those persons. We can train their people,” he added.
Streamlining internal processes
Rankin said coming up through the ranks gave him the perspective needed to make the decisions to guide the service into becoming a well-oiled machine.
He has already created a new middle management post of station manager to increase promotions and provide a bridge to senior management for training and upskilling.
“They come right below the senior management, but they run the operational crews,” he said, explaining that while there will be supervisors on shift, the station managers will be the overall supervisors who work Monday to Friday, ensuring “consistency across that week because from shift to shift things can kind of slip… you might get calls and don’t get to finish [this or that]. But [the station manager] is there to make sure tomorrow we pick that up, training is done.”
Rankin also is looking to increase the number of female firefighters and wants Caymanian women to take up the challenge.
“We do from time to time get one or two [women,] which is good, and [in] the next set [of recruits] I’m hoping we get a few more… [O]ver the years, given the size of the service, it will be a slow process but it’s a process that we would like to see happen that more females… join our ranks,” Rankin said.
Over in the Sister Islands, a new tanker – the same as the ones on Grand Cayman – is being built for Cayman Brac, which he expects to be delivered in March 2023.
At that point, “they’ll have their new tanker, their new rescue [vehicle], and for Little Cayman we have plans to buy some new dual purpose [equipment,] something that can service both the airport and the domestic side because we currently have an aviation truck over there that services both, but that’s not ideal,” he said.
He added he would love to build a station in Little Cayman, which is on the agenda, but it will take time and finances.
Childhood dream
Reflecting on his journey to becoming fire chief, Rankin said fighting fires was a childhood dream for him, though not necessarily getting the top job.
He said he was around 12 when he learned firsthand about the dangers and the loss that fires cause when his friend’s house caught fire in Windsor Park.
It was that experience that propelled him to work towards being a firefighter.
“I remember the night seeing the crew responding to that and extinguishing that fire and I remember seeing his mother there and how that affected her. I felt like that was something that I wanted to do after seeing them,” he said.
He still has that desire to protect life and property and said he is working on launching a safety website for kids to learn about risk management and fire safety, in partnership with agencies including the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service, Cayman Islands Coast Guard and the Department of Education Services.
He envisions the website, www.staywise.ky, becoming part of the school curriculum.
“It’s an education programme, so it’s saving lives through education… we are looking at linking it to the curriculum for the government schools,” he added.
He said the site should be launched by the second quarter of 2023.
Rankin added that though he has spent a lot of time training to lead the service, he could not do it effectively without the support of the men and women in the ranks.
“I want to thank the Cayman Islands Fire Service entire team for doing what they do for their dedication and hard work day in and day out. Without them, it’s not possible. There’s no one person here that can make this thing happen. It’s a team effort and they are very important. Every single one of them from the fleet team, straight down to the new recruits. Everybody has a major role to play for this machine to function,” he said.
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