Training, safety under new supervision at fire department

Published 1:30 am Friday, March 6, 2026

A recent hire at North Whidbey Fire and Rescue will ease chiefs’ workloads.

On Feb. 24, the fire department’s board of commissioners unanimously authorized Fire Chief Chris Swiger to hire Ian Walton as the battalion chief of training and safety, a position left vacant for the last six months. Without someone dedicated to ensuring stations meet safety standards and training is completed throughout the district, those duties fell to other chiefs.

During their re-election campaigns last year, commissioners Marvin Koorn and Robert Miller told the News-Times that keeping firefighters sharp with adequate training would be one focus of their tenures.

“We can get back to doing 100% of our jobs,” Swiger said of the hire. “We enjoy training, but there’s a lot to it, and there’s a lot of responsibility to that position. So it’s easier to have one person in there.”

Walton explained in his new role, he is also responsible for introducing the “next generation of firefighters” to the service, equipping them with tools they can use wherever their firefighting careers take them. Volunteers are an important part of that next generation, he added.

North Whidbey Fire and Rescue depends heavily on volunteer contributions to serve a district of approximately 55 square miles. There are currently 80 volunteers at the department, Swiger confirmed.

Walton’s familiarity with the department gave him an advantage in a rigorous hiring process specific to the job, Swiger explained. Walton started his firefighting career with North Whidbey as a high school sophomore in 1992 before serving as a firefighter in the air force for four years. He began working for Naval Air Station Whidbey Island when he returned to Oak Harbor, and has volunteered with North Whidbey for a “long time” since, Swiger said.

“He can come in and hit the ground running,” he added.

Knowledge of existing procedures, Walton knows where training and safety need to be encouraged. That, he explained, is crucial given how the department has lacked consistency in the position.

“It’s been on and off for years. The longest I think somebody was there for (was) maybe a year, year and half,” Walton said. “It’s a tough position. There’s a lot required of you.”

Walton is well aware of the challenges awaiting him, but appreciates that the opportunity allows him to reinvest in the department.

“I’m excited to see the potential for our firefighters and see where they want to go with their careers, and just be able to be a part of that,” he added.