El Mirage hires assistant fire chief

El Mirage's six-month search for an assistant fire chief has ended with the hiring of Peoria's former fire marshal.

Howard Munding beat out at least 25 applicants for the post, which became vacant after Darrell Rezendes was appointed fire chief in May. Rezendes served as interim chief starting in November 2007, when Scott Alvord suddenly resigned.

Candidates went through a two-panel interview process, one that consisted of city staff and another of fire administrators from other cities.

Applicants came from across the nation and countries such as the United Kingdom and South Africa, said Rezendes, who was on one of the two selection panels.

"Howard was chosen for his experience in training," he said. "He was the best fit for the position. We needed someone with a strong fire-prevention background."

Munding, who spent about 20 years in the Peoria Fire Department, said he hopes to reduce the number of fires in the city through education.

Last year, El Mirage had about 40 fires, and his focus is to "whittle that (number) over time, and to change people's attitudes (toward fire prevention)," he said.

Munding's initial focus is on businesses. He gave a presentation to business owners Thursday on the most common fire hazards that plague for commercial facilities, and how to prevent them.

He stressed that the loss of a business is a "loss to the community overall," meaning jobs are lost and neighborhood home values decline because of a blaze.

Howard Munding