Our History
Officers In Charge
1933 - 1942     Captain Harry Jane

A close friend of Superintendent Bill Wilson, Harry Jane spent some time researching the authority and roles of Fire Police before he was elected Captain: his strong will, tenacity and play-it-by-the-rules put the new Corps on a firm foundation as it gradually established its place in the community.

1942 - 1967     Captain George Hedlund

Captain George Hedlund George Hedlund brought considerable fire brigade experience to the Corps when he joined in the foundation year and later took over as Captain. At his insistence he ordered the first uniform - shirts and trousers - and when the purchase exhausted Corps funds he personally footed the bill. This generosity extended to other gifts for the Corps but not to a sense of consensus. He held strong views on most things and expected others to share them, without question.

1967 - 1970     Captain L D (Des) Beuth

In Captain Beuth's comparatively brief tenure, the Corps consolidated in provincial and nation-wide circles, helping form a provincial association of Fire Police Corps and, twice, attempting (without success) to join the United Fire Brigades' Association (UFBA). Instead, Mr Beuth in 1970 witnessed the formation of an alternative to the UFBA, a nation-wide association for Fire Police.

1970 - 1989     Captain R. (Dick) Reid *

Captain Dick Reid Joining the Corps after service with the local wartime fire brigades, Dick Reid's captaincy brought innovation and invigoration to the Corps with full support (or perhaps it was insistence) from the Fire Board. The uniform was changed, the turnout system improved and regular training was introduced. Dick was the "face" of Fire Police in Auckland for many years, and much further afield through his participation in provincial and national bodies.

1989 - 1996     Divisional Officer R. (Ric) Carlyon

Divisional Officer Ric Carlyon A tenure of consolidation with the Fire Service (Operating Instructions overhauled, annual grant increased and guaranteed, periodic reporting introduced) and the Unit raised sufficient funds to equip every member with a pager and radio. The "look" of the Unit changed too, the long-suffered, unsuitable, yellow plastic jackets replaced by black bunker coats (soon found similarly unsuited to Fire Police duties), and white/orange jerkins for traffic duties. All Unit Officers allocated "portfolios" to streamline and share management and administration of the Unit's increasing workload.

1996 - Present     Chief Fire Officer J. (Jim) Smith **

Chief Fire Officer Jim Smith Early on in his time as Chief, Jim Smith took the Unit into a business-like structure with Officers, all now members of the Management Committee, responsible for their own portfolios and budgets. The Unit's radio communication system received major overhaul and improvement and changes in uniform were put in place to make members much more visible - and safe - on the fireground. In 1997 he oversaw the introduction of the first Fire Police-dedicated urgent traffic van, a pioneering that has since led to an increase to the Unit's fleet of appliances ensuring timely Fire Police responses across a growing Greater Auckland and through ever-increasing traffic.

* The Officer-in-Charge title changed to Divisional Officer in Nov. 1984
** The Officer-in Charge title changed to Chief Fire Officer in May 1996
Auckland Fire Police, also known as the Auckland Volunteer Fire Brigade of the N.Z. Fire Service Commission     Proud member/brigade of the United Fire
Brigades' Association of N.Z. Inc
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