Yongsan assistant fire chief one of best in Army

By Cpl. Im Jin-min (USAG-Yongsan)July 2, 2008

Yongsan assistant fire chief wins award
YONGSAN GARRISON, Republic of Korea - U.S. Army Garrison-Yongsan Assistant Fire Chief Bradley Bowling is one of the top civilian fire officers in the Army. He was named runner-up in the civilian officer category of the 2007 U.S. Army Fire and Emergen... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

<b>YONGSAN GARRISON, Republic of Korea </b> - A Yongsan Fire Department assistant fire chief is one of the Army's best.

Assistant Chief Bradley Bowling was recently named runner-up in the civilian fire officer of the year category of the 2007 U.S. Army Fire and Emergency Services Awards. He was the Korea Region's Fire Officer of the Year, as well.

U.S. Army Garrison-Yongsan's fire chief Alex Temporado said the news was a "pleasant surprise" for the fire department team.

"His reward is a reflection of everybody's hard work," Temporado said. "Brad's efforts pay off in better training for our firefighters and better service for our community, and we are proud of him."

Some of Bowling's accomplishments include training 64 fire firefighters, conducting 150 fire drills and 89 aircraft pilot egress exercises, and teaching more than 540 classes. He also has helped teach Seoul Fire Academy personnel under a cooperative partnership with Korean fire departments.

"It's a big honor, especially at Army level," Bowling said. "It was great to win at the Korea region level, but when you're talking about every fire department in the Army ... that means an awful lot. A lot of it is the environment at Yongsan. Our leadership here is extremely supportive of the ideas we have to improve what we do."

Bowling has been in the firefighting business 15 years. He was a volunteer firefighter before he joined the Marine Corps in 1993. While on active duty, he continued to serve as a volunteer firefighter. When he separated in 1997, he joined federal civilian service as a full-time firefighter at Fort Lee, Va. He leaves this summer to a new assignment at Sigonella Naval Air Station, Italy.

Related Links:

USAG-Yongsan Flickr Photo Site

USAG-Yongsan Official Site