Former Edmonds Fire Chief Tom Tomberg Retires

The following was originally published this week in the summer issue of FlashPoint, the newsletter from Snohomish County Fire District 1, which serves Edmonds and other communities.

Congratulations to Tom Tomberg, who retired from Fire District 1 in April after 40 years in the fire service.

Tomberg began his fire service career in 1971 in Santa Barbara, CA. He served as Fire Chief in Lewiston, ID, from 1991 until 1999 when he came to Snohomish County to become fire chief of the Edmonds Fire Department.

Tomberg worked with elected officials and labor to develop the Edmonds contract for service with Fire District 1. When the contract took effect in 2010 and the Edmonds Fire Department consolidated with the fire district, Tomberg became the assistant fire chief of administration at Fire District 1 and served in that capacity until his retirement.

During his time in Edmonds, he launched a battalion chief program, integrated Medic 7 employees into the department and purchased the Marine 16 rescue boat through a state grant. Tomberg served on committees at the county and state levels and was viewed as a mentor by many other fire chiefs.