Corrales Fire Chief Anthony Martinez has been named the recipient of the VFW Public Servant Award in the firefighter category — recognition that his colleagues say is long overdue for a man who has spent 35 years quietly building one of the most improved fire departments in the state. (Courtesy photo)
Corrales Fire Chief Anthony Martinez has been named the recipient of the VFW Public Servant Award in the firefighter category — recognition that his colleagues say is long overdue for a man who has spent 35 years quietly building one of the most improved fire departments in the state.
According to village officials, Martinez joined the Corrales Fire Department on April 2, 1990, just seven days after his 16th birthday, when the village had a single paid firefighter working weekday business hours. He taught himself to operate every piece of apparatus at the station, including a temperamental 1965 MAC engine that other department members avoided. Former Corrales Fire Chief Jim Fritts recalled that Martinez’s skill with the difficult truck was so valued that Fritts once drove to Martinez’s home to pick him up for a call requiring the MAC as a second engine.
Mayor Fred Hashimoto said the award reflects what many in the village have long known.
“While Chief Martinez does not like the limelight, he deserves the credit for his management of his department and the programs he has put together,” Hashimoto said. “The Village has been super fortunate to have Chief Martinez protecting our properties and the Bosque from fire for the last 35 years. May we have many more.”
Corrales Fire Chief Anthony Martinez has been named the recipient of the VFW Public Servant Award in the firefighter category — recognition that his colleagues say is long overdue for a man who has spent 35 years quietly building one of the most improved fire departments in the state. (Courtesy photo)
Despite the department’s growth, Martinez himself remains characteristically hands-on. He can still be found on weekends and evenings at the station, working on trucks, teaching volunteers to run pumps and welding alongside crew members on duty.
Martinez was hired as a full-time staff member in November 1996 and promoted to chief on July 4, 2003, when Fritts retired. He became the first paid fire chief in village history. Fritts said he “always saw greatness in Anthony” and made a point of keeping him in Corrales to help grow the department.
In 2004, Martinez presented the village council with a plan for 24-hour fire and EMS coverage. The council approved funding for three additional staff members. Today, the department operates two stations with 15 paid staff members providing around-the-clock coverage on a 48/96-hour rotation — a minimum of three personnel on duty at all times.
The department’s Insurance Services Office rating has improved from a 7 to a 4 under his leadership, a change that can lower fire insurance premiums for village residents and businesses. Water infrastructure has expanded from a single 35,000-gallon tank with no public hydrants to five tanks holding a combined 391,000 gallons, three of which are connected to a pump system with water lines and hydrants. Martinez has described the effort as “building a fire suppression system one hydrant at a time.”
Martinez also founded a Swiftwater rescue team, securing equipment funding through the state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, and has performed multiple rescues on the Rio Grande. In 2023, when the Rio Grande ran at unusually high levels, he organized teams along the river and worked with the media to educate the public on safe river use. That same year, Martinez helped install six river mile markers along the Rio Grande — the first ever placed along the river’s entire length — through an Eagle Scout service project.
He passed his EMT basic course at 16, though state licensing rules at the time required him to be certified only as a first responder until he turned 18. He completed his EMT Intermediate certification in 1997.
The VFW Public Servant Award recognizes individuals in public service roles who demonstrate exceptional dedication to their communities.
From one engine to two stations: The chief who transformed Corrales Fire Department
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Corrales Fire Chief Anthony Martinez has been named the recipient of the VFW Public Servant Award in the firefighter category — recognition that his colleagues say is long overdue for a man who has spent 35 years quietly building one of the most improved fire departments in the state.
According to village officials, Martinez joined the Corrales Fire Department on April 2, 1990, just seven days after his 16th birthday, when the village had a single paid firefighter working weekday business hours. He taught himself to operate every piece of apparatus at the station, including a temperamental 1965 MAC engine that other department members avoided. Former Corrales Fire Chief Jim Fritts recalled that Martinez’s skill with the difficult truck was so valued that Fritts once drove to Martinez’s home to pick him up for a call requiring the MAC as a second engine.
Mayor Fred Hashimoto said the award reflects what many in the village have long known.
“While Chief Martinez does not like the limelight, he deserves the credit for his management of his department and the programs he has put together,” Hashimoto said. “The Village has been super fortunate to have Chief Martinez protecting our properties and the Bosque from fire for the last 35 years. May we have many more.”
Corrales Fire Chief Anthony Martinez has been named the recipient of the VFW Public Servant Award in the firefighter category — recognition that his colleagues say is long overdue for a man who has spent 35 years quietly building one of the most improved fire departments in the state. (Courtesy photo)
Despite the department’s growth, Martinez himself remains characteristically hands-on. He can still be found on weekends and evenings at the station, working on trucks, teaching volunteers to run pumps and welding alongside crew members on duty.
Martinez was hired as a full-time staff member in November 1996 and promoted to chief on July 4, 2003, when Fritts retired. He became the first paid fire chief in village history. Fritts said he “always saw greatness in Anthony” and made a point of keeping him in Corrales to help grow the department.
In 2004, Martinez presented the village council with a plan for 24-hour fire and EMS coverage. The council approved funding for three additional staff members. Today, the department operates two stations with 15 paid staff members providing around-the-clock coverage on a 48/96-hour rotation — a minimum of three personnel on duty at all times.
The department’s Insurance Services Office rating has improved from a 7 to a 4 under his leadership, a change that can lower fire insurance premiums for village residents and businesses. Water infrastructure has expanded from a single 35,000-gallon tank with no public hydrants to five tanks holding a combined 391,000 gallons, three of which are connected to a pump system with water lines and hydrants. Martinez has described the effort as “building a fire suppression system one hydrant at a time.”
Martinez also founded a Swiftwater rescue team, securing equipment funding through the state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management, and has performed multiple rescues on the Rio Grande. In 2023, when the Rio Grande ran at unusually high levels, he organized teams along the river and worked with the media to educate the public on safe river use. That same year, Martinez helped install six river mile markers along the Rio Grande — the first ever placed along the river’s entire length — through an Eagle Scout service project.
He passed his EMT basic course at 16, though state licensing rules at the time required him to be certified only as a first responder until he turned 18. He completed his EMT Intermediate certification in 1997.
The VFW Public Servant Award recognizes individuals in public service roles who demonstrate exceptional dedication to their communities.
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