Fire Chief Donald Adams has been at the helm of the Lehigh Acres Fire Department for five years. He has been in the profession since 1975.

His duties are numerous and include, but are not limited, to department oversight, budget forecasting, and policy and procedure enforcement. Since he became chief, firefighters have had to become paramedics and EMTs.

He has also implemented a more aggressive approach to firefighting by sending out more trucks and firefighters for calls. This modification affords firefighters the ability put out or reduce the amount of damage more quickly.

Once the fire is under control, the onsite firefighters are reduced to one truck with four firefighters. This method has been found to be a more effective approach to firefighting.

The fire station at 636 Thomas Sherwin Ave. S. was closed and used as the departments administrative building at the height of the economic crunch. The department was later granted a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant in the amount of $8.9 million, which enabled its restoration as a fire station.

Prior to the change in the economy, projections had been made to build four new fire stations in Lehigh Acres. It was then tagged as the fastest growing community in the nation. Things changed however and cutbacks ensued, which triggered the current more aggressive approach to firefighting.

The Lehigh Acres Fire Department includes three shifts per day of 37 firefighters per shift. When a fire engine is sent out, it carries a minimum of four firefighters.

In addition to the dangerous nature of their work, the hiring process for firefighters is an extensive procedure. A candidate must be at least 18 years old, has to complete 500 fire standard hours and successfully pass all tests, become an EMT or a paramedic, pass an extensive background check, appear before the commissioners committee and successfully complete interviews.

Volunteers must also undergo the same procedures.

Lehigh has five fire commissioners to keep Adams at peak performance at all times. In addition to all of the stressful duties of the department, they go to the schools in Lehigh and teach students fire safety procedures and demonstrate the effective usage of a typical fire engine in emergencies.