Wood reflects on half-century career

Tom Wood has seen a lot in his nearly 50-years with the Libby Volunteer Fire Department.

Battling life threatening blazes and overseeing station expansions, the former fire chief ushered the department from a small town brigade to one of the highest-rated fire fighting units in the state.

“It had been a dream of mine,” said Wood while reflecting on his career. “I get about half sentimental thinking about it.”

Wood stepped down from his post in early April. While no longer head of the department, the veteran white hat will stay on with the force for a few months to help newly-elected Chief Steve Lauer with administrative duties.

Fire hall records indicate that Wood began his service in 1971, but he will tell you he started responding to calls much earlier. Growing up, Wood admired his father, who volunteered with and eventually headed the local brigade. Hoping to join in on the action as a child, Wood would run the half-a-block from his home to the firehouse whenever he heard the sirens ring.

Oftentimes he would beat the volunteers there.

“I’d open the doors and start the trucks for them,” he said. “It has been in my blood for a long time.”

When Wood officially joined the department, the force looked much different than it does now. Whereas today’s volunteers clad themselves in Kevlar turnouts, Wood said he began fighting fires in what was essentially a rubber raincoat.

During one of his early fires, Wood went into a burning motel to save a trapped victim. While he and the other rookie who braved the blaze completed the rescue, they had to go to the hospital afterward to have their suits peeled off.

“We had just nylon jackets and we came out and they were just melted to us,” he recalled.

Early in his career, Wood said the brigade had only one station on Sixth Street, which housed two primary vehicles. The department’s rating, which sets insurance prices for nearby homeowners and is graded on a scale of 10 with lower numbers corresponding to lower insurance rates, was a seven within Libby and a nine in the surrounding rural area.

Volunteers now operate out of four stations, along with an additional building adjacent to the original firehouse. Over the years, the department’s fleet of primary vehicles has expanded to 14. The unit’s insurance rating has improved to a three — the best of any volunteer department in the state — in both the city and the nearby rural area.

Helping the department modernize and expand was no easy task for Wood. His role on the force became increasingly administrative after his fellow firefighters elected him chief 25 years ago. Between the Libby City Council, the Lincoln County Rural Fire Board and the chamber of commerce, Wood recalled attending what seemed to be an endless series of meetings.

“I was meeting to death,” he said.

The former chief was quick to say, however, that he was not solely responsible for all the changes the department underwent during his tenure. The efforts of the rural fire board and city council were essential in making the upgrades possible.

While sad to have vacated his post, Wood said he was excited to see a new generation of firefighters moving up the fire hall ranks. Among the newly elected top brass is his son-in-law, Scott Beagle, who became assistant fire chief earlier this month.

To stay on top of the department’s calls, Wood keeps a radio in his truck. Hearing Lauer respond as fire one — the call sign for fire chief — has taken some getting used to.

“I think ‘oh what am I’,” said Wood. “[Lauer] said we’ll just call in ‘fire one r’ for ‘fire one retired.’”