Jim Kambeitz still remembers when the Portland Fire Bureau visited his grade school to talk about fire prevention.
“That had a big impact on me,” Kambeitz, 50, said at Longview’s fire station on Commerce Avenue Thursday. “I remember that when I think about the prevention work we do here: the public relations work that really has a big impact on people and a lot on our students.”
Kambeitz spent most of his career in fire prevention until last week, when Longview City Manager Kurt Sacha appointed him fire chief to replace former chief Phil Jurmu, who stepped down to become the director of Cowlitz County’s new 911 emergency communications agency.
“I think Jim will do excellent,” Jurmu told The Daily News Thursday. “He’s very professional. He’s highly ethical and his integrity is very strong."