2010 CITY AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS

Operation "Smoky Hill"
On August 10, 2010, the Salina Fire Department (SFD) was presented a plaque to recognize the SFD's contributions to the Kansas National Guard during Operation "Smoky Hill."  Operation "Smoky Hill" was a multi-agency exercise designed to test the State's response to a large scale terrorist act.  The exercise was conducted at Crisis City, located in Saline County.

IAFC - US Safety Engineering Award of Excellence
The City of Salina Fire Department was selected by the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) as one of the seven finalist to receive the IAFC-US Safety Engineering Award for Excellence.  The department's "Performance Analysis Process" was selected as a finalist from hundreds of innovative programs across the nation.  This innovative process was featured in the Kansas Government Journal and the International Association of City Manager's Public Management magazine.  Reacting to the news of the selection, Chief Larry Mullikin said, "It's really humbling to realize that there are 30,000+ fire departments in the U.S. and that the IAFC represents the leadership of over 1.2 million firefighters and emergency responders.  IAFC selected our community, our department, and our firefighters as having one of the seven best programs in the country.  The selection is a credit to our firefighters, fire officers, City Manager, City Commission, and our partners with the County."

2010 Distinguished Fellow
Steve Snyder, Director of Parks and Recreation, was honored as the 2010 Distinguished Fellow from the Kansas Recreation and Parks Association.  He has served the City of Salina for over 35 years, and the last 22 as the director of the department.  In addition, he served on the KRPA as the treasurer (1987-1988) and president (1991-1992).  Snyder said, "I felt real honored to be nominated and selected for the award...it means a lot."  Winners of the award must be a member of the Kansas Recreation and Parks Association, worked in the field for at least 10 years, and demonstrated outstanding service.  Chris Curtis, Recreation Superintendent, nominated Snyder for the award