Breitung Fire Chief Burgess steps back from top role

SOUDAN- With 40 years of service to Breitung Fire and Rescue, Steve Burgess was not ready to retire. But he was ready to usher in some younger leadership to the department. As of Feb. 1, Trevor Banks has assumed the role of Fire Chief, and Burgess is back to being what he was when he first joined the department, a regular volunteer fire fighter.
“I have proudly served as the Fire Chief of Breitung Fire and Rescue for 30 years,” Burgess said.
His biggest take-away from his time as chief has been the camaraderie found through the “brotherhood of fire service.”
“The department is not about having shiny new equipment,” he said.
“We believe in a culture that promotes service to the public in their time of need, the safety of our members, and the importance of being well-trained.”
“It is about the members I have proudly had the opportunity to lead,” he said. “My time as chief has been a great opportunity to lead, learn, and become a better person.”
Burgess joined the department 40 years ago. He grew up in Tower, graduating from Tower High School, and went to Vermilion Community College and then on to Bemidji. He and his wife Barb moved to Soudan shortly after the birth of their daughter, and Burgess worked at the Potlatch plant in Cook.
But the education he is most proud of is his longtime knowledge of firefighting, gleaned from years of training, classes, and on-call experience.
During that time, he has learned a lot about the science and techniques of firefighting, along with fire department leadership. He began teaching fire fighter education classes, something he plans to continue. He also plans on providing mentorship and support, as needed, to the new chief as he begins his term.
“I wanted to help my community,” he said. After eight years on the department, he was promoted to assistant chief. Two years later, he assumed the role of fire chief, not realizing it was a job he would keep for 30 more years.
“I’ve been telling the department for four years that I was going to retire,” he said. “Thirty years is a long time.”
Burgess doesn’t expect the township to see another chief that stays for that long. The job, he said, has changed since he first started, and is more demanding and requires more time and training.
Banks is a veteran fire fighter and has been a member of the department since 1996. He has held the role of Captain for the last nine years.
“Everything I know about fire fighting is because of Steve,” Banks said. “I’ve grown to be the person I am because of him.”
Banks is very aware of the size of the shoes he needs to fill.
“I hope to maintain the same level of professionalism that Steve has brought the fire department,” he said.
Banks is a St. Louis County Sheriff, and he started his career in law enforcement with the Breitung Police Department in 1994.
Burgess is most proud of the work done to move the fire department into its new dedicated quarters in the township’s newly renovated community center. Formerly, the department shared its space with the township government, which held its monthly meetings literally right next to the parked fire trucks.
When the township moved its maintenance department to an adjacent building, the former fire hall space was turned into township offices and a community space. The fire department moved into the remodeled maintenance area, now brightly lit, with plenty of room for the department’s equipment, fire fighter lockers, and more.
The department now has 19 members, and about a third of them have at least 20 years of experience, Burgess said. The department meets once a month for a combined business meeting and training.
“There is a successful partnership between the township and our department,” said Burgess. “It promotes a positive culture.”
The fact that department members feel a sense of belonging, have a sense of pride in their work and training, have fun working on department goals, and feel appreciated by the township is key to their success, he said.
The new chief was voted on by fire department members, and then forwarded to the town board for final approval. Other officers this year include Matt Tuchel as assistant fire chief, Doug Carter as captain (previously held by Trevor Banks), and Lance Dougherty as lieutenant (previously held by Matt Tomsich).
The department, with its depth of experience, is seen as a leader in the area. The department has an automatic on-call paging system with both Tower and Greenwood, which means all three departments are initially paged for a fire in any of the three communities. Besides having four fire trucks, the department has a fire boat, rescue snowmobile, cold water rescue equipment, and extrication equipment. The department was formed in 1950.