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Arkansas has a new state fire marshal, an office whose work reaches into every city and county in the state, including Baxter County.
The Arkansas Division of Emergency Management announced Monday that Director A.J. Gary had appointed John Hogue to the post. Hogue begins transitioning into the job immediately.
Hogue has 32 years of experience in fire, explosion and hazardous materials investigations, according to the agency. It said he has conducted more than 1,500 fire and explosive investigations around the country.
His career includes work as a fire investigator, law enforcement officer, fire code inspector and plans reviewer, urban search and rescue technician, hazardous materials technician, fire captain and EMT. He has also served on a bomb squad and is a licensed private investigator.
Hogue holds certifications from the International Association of Arson Investigators, the National Association of Fire Investigators and the FBI, including a post-blast technician certification. He has taught courses for the Arkansas Fire Academy and local EMT associations.
Gary said in a statement that Hogue’s experience in complex fire and explosive investigations made him a strong choice for the job, and pointed to his record on interagency coordination.
The state fire marshal’s office oversees fire prevention, investigation and code enforcement statewide, work that puts it in regular contact with local fire departments. Mountain Home is currently weighing whether to adopt a section of the Arkansas Fire Prevention Code covering inspections of mobile food preparation vehicles, a companion measure to the city’s proposed food truck ordinance rewrite.
