A new collective bargaining agreement offers a fresh start between the fire chief, a non-union city administrator, and 142 union members, including deputy chiefs and captains — the department’s senior management. Numerous chiefs have left McAllen since 2003. One lasted only five weeks.

Two scathing investigations ordered by the city’s Civil Service Commission determined the union routinely used the contract to undermine the chief’s authority and created a parallel chain of command. Union officials have disputed those findings.

Attorney James Selman, who conducted both investigations, said the department’s problems could fester unless the contract changes.

“It won’t matter who the chief is — it will have a dramatically negative impact on his ability to control his department,” said Selman, who lives in Port Isabel. “Any of the changes he wants to put forward can effectively be vetoed by the union executive committee.”

The contract between McAllen and Local 2602 dictates everything from starting salaries to which chores the firefighters must perform at station houses. Though the agreement expires Oct. 1, firefighters will continue operating under the old contract while negotiations continue. Any deadlock could send both sides to court, where a judge would be asked to interpret conflicting amendments to the city charter.

Both measures passed last November. One prohibits binding arbitration in labor disputes; the other requires it. Though city officials feel the first amendment will prevail, a judge will ultimately decide.

The Players
Longtime union president Amado Cano, also a deputy chief, will represent the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 2602. Only 11 of the department’s eligible firefighters haven’t joined the union.

Aside from a stint as interim chief, Cano has been a member of the union’s executive committee since the union began negotiating contracts. He will be off work for about two months for surgery. Cano has been a controversial figure in the department.

A 2006 report by the Civil Service Commission concluded Cano conspired with former Chief Anthony Rogers to target a city commissioner’s properties for code enforcement after the commissioner shot down their proposed budget. Cano flatly denied allegations and, through an attorney, issued a rebuttal.

Last year, another report cast Cano in an unflattering light. Written by the same attorney, James Selman, the report recounted a phone call between Cano and current Chief Rogelio Rubio.

“You can’t do anything; I am the (expletive) Union President,” the report quotes Cano as telling Rubio. Cano told The Monitor he is preparing a written rebuttal of the report, which he described as full of unfounded allegations and sparse on facts.

That report is the only independent account of the turmoil at the Fire Department. It comes with a nearly 600-page appendix documenting its conclusions and was approved by the Civil Service Commission.

Cano will work with attorney Ricardo Navarro, who represents the city of McAllen.

A public-sector lawyer, Navarro has negotiated contracts with firefighters unions in Brownsville, Weslaco and Pharr. This is the first year McAllen has hired an outside attorney to lead negotiations. Navarro predicted the poor economy would make money a key point of contention and could also make the city hesitant about committing to a lengthy contract.

Before the current three-year contract, firefighters had negotiated a two-year deal.
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The night is still fresh on Mission Fire Captain Conrado Martinez’ mind. He was one of four firefighters and a police officer who saved two children and five adults on Wednesday. They nearly drowned in the raging river’s deadly current. Martinez remembers the minute they all met. They were surrounded by water and the black of the night.

Martinez could sense their fear and desperation. “They showed some sign of relief once we made contact with them but you could see they were desperate. They were eager to get out of the conditions they were in,” he said.

Rene Alaniz Jr. was also there. “Even though they were Mexican nationals, it doesn’t make a difference. We’re human. This is our job. This is what we train for,” he said.

Jorge Flores operated the boat that night. Rescues are more than just a job for the Fire Lieutenant, they are a way of life. A struggle to beat the dangerous odds in the game of life and death.

“When we go out to incidents like this that are dangerous, no visibility, the training kicks in and everything just falls into place,” Flores said.

Joel Saenz left his family’s side to answer the call to help. He admits it’s hard leaving behind his wife and four month old daughter. He understand its his duty.

“You have to be able to let go of home and come to work to help a total stranger. You helped them out and to go back home and say, hey I helped somebody out, it made me feel good,” Saenz said.

That good feeling is visible on the faces of these men in uniform.

Call them heroes and they simply laugh it off. Call them for help and they’ll be there every time.

Flores is a pension plan administrator for the Corpus Christi Firefighter’s Retirement System and is a member of the Texas Association of Public Employees’ Retirement System, recording secretary of the Texas Local Fire Fighter’s Retirement Act Legislative Committee and treasurer of the Catholic Daughters of the Americas Court No. 2544. Flores received a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. She is reappointed to the board.

“They have a good facility, not like what we have, and it is good to train with different people other than your usual crew,” he said.

The Baytown resident has been working in operations at Chevron Cedar Bayou Plant for 10 years and began volunteering on the emergency response team during his fourth year. Morgan said having such a team ensures that his co-workers will always be taken care of — no matter what.

“I knew other guys would come and get me if I were ever down, so I felt obligated to be part of the team,” he said.

More than 500 students are attending the 48th annual Industrial Fire School this week. Four times that many students are expected for next week’s Municipal Fire School.

Morgan has been attending the Industrial Fire classes for six years, but said there’s always something new to learn. This year, Morgan discovered more about emergency medical training and patient care procedures, but one lesson he always remembers is the value of teamwork, he said.

Robbie Bailey said fire school is like a vacation for him, too, and working with new people is one of his favorite parts about spending a week at the Brayton Fire Training Field immediately south of Easterwood Airport.

“It’s great getting a break to come up here for a week and meet new people from all over the world,” he said. “They teach us something and we teach them something, too.”

This is the third year at the Industrial Fire School for the Corpus Christi Citgo refinery employee.

“It’s good to know what is going on if something ever happens, and I figured this was something I needed to do,” Bailey said. “They train us, but they don’t teach us how to be firefighters, so that’s why we come.”

Bailey and the other students at the fire school practice how to properly put out massive fires using fire extinguishers and synthetic foams, which act as a vapor barrier.

Field Safety Officer Instructor Stephen Greco said he wants his students to keep safety a priority. Industry employees encounter leaking pipes, chemical spills, hydrocarbon fires and they may even have to undergo rescues, he said.

“We want to teach them ways of thinking and techniques so they themselves can recognize risks and reduce these risks,” Greco said.

Firefighters were called to the Spanish Oaks Apartments Tuesday afternoon and quickly put out flames in an upstairs apartment, said Corpus Christi Fire Department Batallion Chief Wayne Prall.

Officials said the other apartments in the unit did not have fire or water damage, but the fire did burn the building’s main wiring system. Prall said the cause of the fire is under investigation. He estimates total damage between $30,000 and $40,000.

Mission Fire Capt. Joel Dominguez said city workers were placing sandbags at the historical marker at La Lomita Mission about 10:21 a.m. Sunday when they heard cries for help coming from a nearby flooded area.

The Mission Fire Department’s swift water rescue team alongside the state’s swift water rescue team responded to the scene and used a boat to pull the three Mexican nationals from the water, Dominguez said. A U.S. Customs and Border Protection helicopter hovered above the flood victims to guide firefighters to their location on the flooded brushlands. No injuries were reported during the rescue, Dominguez said.

In Mission alone, the city’s fire department dive team has responded to about 18 rescues since the Rio Grande spilled from its banks earlier this month, Domiguez said. The rescues have practically become a daily occurrence, Dominguez said. All have involved people attempting to illegally cross into South Texas, he said.

“As far as on the U.S. side, we have not had any problems with people in the water,” Dominguez said. “It has all been from the other side.”

Alaniz adds no one was evacuated and the gas dissipated quickly. Since part of Dove was already closed for repairs, no other road closures were necessary.

Firefighters said the blaze is believed to have originated from a motorized wheelchair that somehow let off sparks and ignited a fire. The living room of the house remains severely burned and the rest of the home received substantial smoke damage, Corpus Christi fire officials said.

No injuries were reported in the blaze.

It took firefighters eight minutes to knock down the flames, Rasmusson said. The majority of the damage was to drywall in a bedroom and in a bathroom, with smoke damage throughout the home. The American Red Cross Coastal Bend chapter is providing temporary housing, food and clothing for the family, said Sherry Bowers, director of communications for the chapter.

A KRGV News photographer at the scene says International Boundary and Water Commission workers inspecting a levee spotted the driver after 5 o’clock this morning. The IBWC workers called for help. Firefighters used a boat to get to the man. He was on the roof of his vehicle when they got to him.

The driver is doing okay at this hour, but his vehicle remains under water. Deputies tell us the driver crossed around barricades.