Amarillo Fire Department thanks Deputy Chief Baucom for 30 years of service
After 30 years, Amarillo Deputy Fire Chief Sam Baucom capped off his career with the Amarillo Fire Department last week with a retirement ceremony, held Friday at the Amarillo Civic Center in downtown Amarillo.
During his time with the department, Baucom assisted with the design of the heavy rescue truck; taught at the fire academy; and helped to develop the water rescue, building collapse and trench rescue programs. Baucom served as deputy chief for the last nine years.
Baucom said that it meant a lot to serve the city he grew up in, for more than three decades of total service.
“It has not really sunk in that I am retiring from the department,” Baucom said. “I really enjoyed the comradery, fellowship and the family of being in this department. It has been an honor working for the city and the Amarillo Fire Department; I am enormously proud of the department and being a representative of it. I thank all for this honor and privilege."
According to Baucom, his retirement will give him and his wife, Shannon, an opportunity to travel that would not have been possible while still being with the department.
“We want to look at what’s out there,” Baucom said. “I would like to do some traveling off the continent to some places I have never been, but for now, I am just going to spend some time in Texas.”
According to a news release from the fire department, beginning with April 1, 1993, Baucom has served in various capacities, including program manager over Rescue, ARFF, Emergency Preparedness, and Training, and later served as Deputy Chief over the Support and Operations Divisions. The department said three of the most significant events Baucom responded to include the March 2006 East Amarillo Complex Fire, the July 2014 Town Square Apartment Fire and Hurricane Harvey in August 2017.
Baucom said that during his 30 years, he has seen and been involved in a lot of improvements in the Amarillo Fire Department.
“Some of the biggest changes I have seen during my time in the department is the technology that has been provided to firefighters, such as better trucks, better gear and technology like thermal image scanners that help us to find people in buildings,” Baucom said.
Amarillo Fire Chief Jason Mays spoke about the service of Baucom. Mays said that he had worked with him at Fire Station No. 9, where Baucom was his captain and he was a driver.
“Sam had a unique skill set and an ability to dig into details that made him suited to get programs off the ground,” Mays said. “He was instrumental in reforming our fire academy and getting the training program and staff set up.”
Mays said that having a person as experienced as Baucom retiring will leave a knowledge gap that he is confident that he has people in the department that will step up to fill.
"His contributions will be sorely missed, and I thank him for his service to the community and to our department and city,” Mays added.
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Amarillo deputy fire chief Baucom retires after 30 years of service
