MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP - Emergency services, such as the fire department, are crucial to the well being of everyone in the community.

These services operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

That schedule demands a strong leader, like Meridian Township's new Fire Chief Mike Hamel, to make sure everything runs smoothly.

Hamel was appointed the position of Chief on July 1st at the Meridian Charter Township Central Fire Station. Since then, Chief Hamel says he's been "diving into the organization."

In his first few weeks at work he constructed a 5 year budget plan that includes equipment replacement schedules, as it is imperative that all emergency equipment works properly when the time comes to use it.

The Meridian Fire Department employees do a lot more than just fight fires, there's plenty of administrative work work that goes on behind the scenes that includes public fire safety programs. The primary responsibility of the Fire Chief is to act as an administrator for the department and coordinate with his employees to make sure the department stays on track. Chief Hamel also does a lot of work with the township manager as well as other emergency service departments such as the Police Department.