Kirkland Fire Cpt. Bill Hoover has received the American Professional Management Services Meritorious Award for his efforts to improve firefighter training standards, as well as safety while responding to fires.

A 23-year fire veteran, Hoover has been with the Kirkland Fire Department (KFD) since 1992 and it is the only department he has worked with. A Skyway native, he first became interested in firefighting due to his best friend’s dad, who was firefighter. He volunteered at a local fire station and quickly immersed himself in firefighting, living at the station until he turned 21.

“It’s always good to help people,” he said. “Also, it’s never the same day twice. You get to work with high quality people. Any moment you’re called to do something exciting.”

Hoover was promoted to captain in 2011, the same year he was named Officer of the Year by the department.

He currently works on a team developing the training standards for firefighting recruits through the East Metro Training Group – a firefighter training program which includes fire departments in Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond, Mercer Island, Woodinville, Bothell, Shoreline and Northshore. The standards are updated and revised annually to reflect growing awareness of new hazards and changes in safety practices. Last year, Hoover served as the lead instructor for the recruit school, which is set to begin again this January and train five new recruits for the KFD. An independent group later evaluates the training of recruits.

Hoover has also been actively involved in promoting new firefighter safety procedures during and after responses in order to mitigate exposure to pathogens and carcinogens caused by chemicals found in ordinary household items decomposing during fires.

Some of the measures include changing and washing clothes after a fire incident, as well as preventing the spread of chemicals by hand washing and keeping food away from contaminated areas. According to a recent study by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, firefighters have a higher rate of cancer than the rest of the population.

Much of this is blamed on flame retardants, which emit toxic chemicals firefighters either breathe or get on their skin during a fire.

Diagnosed with thyroid cancer in 2010, Hoover co-founded the Washington chapter of the Firefighters Cancer Support Network, along with Shoreline Fire Battalion Chief Eric Monroe, and successfully got the Washington State Council of Fire Fighters (WSCFF) to build the Personal Injury, Illness, Exposure Reporting System (PIIERS), which enables firefighters to individually keep track of incidents to use when filing claims with their healthcare provider. WSCFF first decided to look into it during their 2013 WSCFF Convention.