Mark Olmstead Named Airport "2005 Firefighter of the Year"

- 25-year veteran cited for work on Hurricane Katrina, airport tank farm -

The Port of Seattle Fire Department has named Firefighter Mark Olmstead as the agency's 2005 Firefighter of the Year. Selected by his co-workers at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the award will be presented in a ceremony on March 23.

A 25-year veteran of the airport fire department, Olmstead was one of six firefighters who traveled to New Orleans to assist disaster victims after Hurricane Katrina struck.

"Mark really sets a great example for our younger firefighters, and all Port employees," said Port of Seattle Commission President Patricia Davis. "I'm very pleased that Mark has been selected for his honor."

Olmstead's co-workers noted his expertise in both putting out fires, and preventing them in the first place; he is currently assigned to the department's Fire Prevention Division.

"The selection of Firefighter of the Year is as much about daily work as about heroics," said Port of Seattle Fire Chief Mike Mandella. "Mark's contributions in fire prevention make this a safer airport every day, for every person who comes here."

Beyond a 30-day deployment to New Orleans, Olmstead's major project for the year was contributing fire safety expertise to the recent renovation and upgrade of the airport's fuel tank farm. The tank farm's fire suppression system was a major portion of the project.

"Mark not only used his expertise to make the tank farm a safer place, but he found efficiencies that saved the project thousands of dollars in the process," said Billy Jones, president of the International Association of Firefighters Local 1257.

The award includes a $500 honorarium, paid in equal parts by the Port and Local 1257. Olmstead also will receive a fire department ring as a permanent memento.