Wildland Fire Assessment Program

Doug deBest has been involved in the fire service for over twenty-nine years, with the majority of his time spent in volunteer roles within volunteer or combination departments.  He has served in many different compacities within the fire service; from volunteer & career roles on municipal departments, part-time on a private fire department, and even as an industrial fire brigade member.  Doug served on the Baroda Fire Department for fifteen years, rising from the role of firefighter to the rank of Fire Chief.  Currently, Doug serves as a Lieutenant and the Training Officer for the St. Joseph Township Fire Department – Station # 1.

Doug has earned a Bachelor Degree in Fire Science from Lake Superior State University, and a Master Degree from Western Michigan University.  He recently completed a Graduate Certificate in Emergency Management & Disaster Resilience from Eastern Kentucky University.  Doug was awarded an “Alumni Fellow” from Lake Superior State University for his contributions to the Life of the University in 2005; he is the recipient of the only Alumni Fellow to be awarded to a Fire Science graduate.

Doug has attended hundreds of hours of training related to the areas of fire fighting, emergency medical services, technical rescue, and emergency management.  Doug holds numerous certifications from the Office of Fire Fighter Training (OFFT) in Michigan; including Fire Fighter II, Fire Officer III and Instructor II.  He is also a licensed Emergency Medical Technician and an Emergency Medical Services – Instructor / Coordinator.   Doug has maintained his certification as a Professional Emergency Manager from the Michigan State Police, since 2001.  Doug is also a license Drinking Water System Operator, at the S-3 level with the State of Michigan.

In early 2022, Doug was credentialed as a Chief Training Officer by the Center for Public Safety Excellence; for his achievements and hard work in the area of fire training and instruction.  This was the second time that Doug was recognized for his achievements and efforts in fire service leadership, as he received the designation as a Fire Officer by the Center for Public Safety Excellence; in December of 2012.

Chief Johnson's career spans 25 years of public service.  In his early career he started the fire service in 1993 with the El Dorado County Fire Department and joined the U.S. Forest Service in 1995 where he held positions from firefighter to fire captain.  He was an instructor of Fire Science at the College of Southern Nevada.  Later he held the positions of Assistant Chief and Fire Training Instructor at Clark County Fire Department in the State of Nevada. These roles required him to supervise a paid and volunteer firefighting staff, 13 Fire Stations and EMS personnel. 

Currently Chief Johnson is the Fire Chief for Ebbett’s Pass Fire District, a position he was appointed to in September of 2014. The Ebbett’s Pass Fire District provides fire suppression, advanced life support, and ground emergency medical transport for its 6,750 residents and visitors within the Special Districts 225 square mile boundary. Chief Johnson is very proud of the quality of service provided and their bound to our community.

Jeff Romines lives in Terre Du Lac, Mo. with his wife Susan, 2 dogs and 4 cats. He has been in the Fire Service for over 50 years and started as a Junior Firefighter at 10 years old. Over those years he was in EMS for 35 with 30 of those years as a Paramedic. In his time as a Paramedic, he worked for many ground services across Missouri, but was also a Flight Paramedic for 11 years. In Jeff’s Fire Service time, he held every position up to being Fire Chief of 3 Fire Departments. He grew up in the Ozark Mountain Range in Missouri and fought many a Wildland Fire over those 50 years. The Wildland Fires range from 10 acres up to 2000 acres. His civilian job is with the world's largest Lead Mining company as a Safety Specialist. Currently, he works for Trident Rescue, which specializes in providing training in all aspects of water rescue from Swiftwater, Ice Rescue, Boat Operations, and Urban Flood Rescue. They also sell all the equipment needed. He loves being an Adjunct Instructor for NVFC in their WFAP, providing knowledge and training to communities to help them be safer and protect against Wildfire.