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Fire Chief, Pearlie Riner,
first became a member of the Naples Fire Department as a
volunteer in 1941. Cale
Jones was then both the police and fire
chief.
The year 1946 was a big one in Riner's career as a fireman when he made assistant chief under Jones, not long after this, Riner became the first paid fireman on a part time basis at a salary of $4.00 per month, then to $12.00 in a third salary raise. Today (in 1964 ) Riner, as the chief of the department, works on a part time basis, but he admits most of his time is spent at the firehouse. Riner, first came to Collier County in 1935, and lived at Ochopee. He moved to Naples in 1939 and lived on Goodletter Rd.. Remembering past fires, Riner hopes never again to relive the destructive fires such as those of the Naples Supply and the Outboard Marina. On the lighter side Riner remembers the times the department was called out to remove a duck which had fallen down a chimney and of course the cats from the trees, which had become routine. Riner's present aim is to get a class 7 rating which will warrent smaller insurance premiums for the Naples area. The class 7 rating will save Neapolitans between $18,000. and 25,000 per year, Underwriters inspectors who have been in Naples, made recomendiations for improvements. The "Snorkel" truck with life equipment will help keep pace with the tall buildings starting to dot the skyline of Naples, the 75 foot Elevator will put firemen up for the rescue needed when fighting fire in the tall buildings. All these improvements help to lower insurance premiums by making the Naples area a safer place to live and work in. The Naples Fire Department has a working agreement with both North and East Naples Fire Departments and the Collier County Fire Control Unit. The department holds fire drills for both paid and volunteer firemen the second Monday each month, and annually the men are students in a fire school taught by the State Fire College facility. |
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