ST. CLAIRSVILLE — The Cumberland Trail Fire District has a new chief following the retirement of John Slavik and the promotion of his assistant chief, Tim Hall, to the position.

Slavik stepped down at the end of 2018. Hall was named fire chief in early January. The change was announced at last week’s meeting of St. Clairsville City Council.

Councilman Frank Sabatino, also a fire board member, said the city was fortunate to have had Slavik’s services for the past two years, and added that the board welcomes Hall to the leadership post.

“I’m very humbled and honored to not only be in the position I’m in, but to be part of this organization,” Hall said afterward at the fire station. “I don’t foresee many changes moving forward. I believe we have a great foundation here that was in place well before me. That’s a credit to our previous chiefs and to our community support.”

Hall has been in the firefighting service since 2004. He began work as a part-time firefighter at Cumberland Trail in 2006, moving to full time in 2010.

Firefighting has always been a part of Hall’s life. His father, Tim J. Hall, is the fire chief in Barnesville. His grandfather, Gary Hall, also was a member of Barnesville’s fire department, as was his great-grandfather, Harold Hall.

“The fire service has always had a special place in my heart,” the new chief said. “From a very young age, my father would take me to the fire department very regularly, and I’ve always enjoyed being around the fire service and the camaraderie that it brings with the fellow firefighters.”

He added that the firefighters are the most important resource of the district.

“The guys … make my job easy. I rely heavily on those guys,” he said. “We have a great core group.”

Hall said he valued his mentorship under Slavik, who came to the Cumberland Trail Fire District with four decades of experience, including 30 years of fire service in Washington, D.C.

“His knowledge about operations and firefighting is second to none,” Hall said of Slavik. “He’s very knowledgeable about tactics and the fire service, and his experience working at Washington, D.C. — when he came here as fire chief, he brought some new and fresh ideas.”

He said Slavik introduced a number of tactics related to fighting a fire in the interior of a building, such as advancing hose lines.

Hall said the fire district will continue to respond to fire, accident and emergency services calls as usual under his leadership.

“The majority of our calls are EMS. The board recently gave approval to purchase a new ambulance. Last year we did 2,882 calls. That trend continues to move upward with time,” he said, adding that the new ambulance should be received in May. The cost of the vehicle was $169,000.

Hall also intends to continue reaching out to the public through in-home fire inspections and smoke detector inspections. The department’s doors will be open should members of the public stop by with questions.

Originally from Barnesville, Hall now resides in St. Clairsville with his wife, Kelsey, and daughter, Ellabelle.

Slavik concluded an impressive career that began in 1977 in St. Clairsville before he moved on to Washington, D.C., then back to the the local area. He credited the community and other firefighters for any success he has achieved.

“The fire district’s going to be in good hands with Chief Hall for many years to come,” Slavik said.

“I was very honored to serve. I had a tremendous amount of cooperation from the city and (Richland) Township,” he said. “I couldn’t have asked for a better situation. But the best thing was the members that the fire district already had. They’re so well-trained and so dedicated, it made it pretty easy to work in that situation. …

“I think firefighters are the same everywhere.”

Slavik initiated changes including new high rise firefighting tactics and changes to physical fitness exercises.

“They had a very, very strong training regimen at Cumberland Trail, and I got on board with it. Tried to stay ahead of the curve with the oil and gas industry and hazardous materials. Our guys are very sharp,” he said.

“Our paramedics are very busy. With the drug epidemic seizing America, which includes the valley, our guys are right on top of the latest techniques and care for their patients,” he said.

Slavik also worked to strengthen ties with other local fire departments in the interest of mutual aid.

“We have a great working relationship with those departments,” he said.

Slavik intends to remain connected with the fire service in a training role, and he said he may volunteer with a department.