Fernley’s fire crews have long fought blazes without battalion brass. That changed last week, as
three North Lyon County Fire Protection District firefighters assumed the roles of battalion
chiefs, managing the district’s day-to-day operations.
The District’s Board of Directors on April 17 voted to approve job descriptions for the battalion
chief positions and to promote three captains to battalion chief. After a testing and promotional
process, Joseph Mendoza, William Snyder and Justin McCoy were sworn in as battalion chiefs
on Oct. 16 and began serving in those roles on Oct. 21.
Snyder has been a firefighter with North Lyon Fire since 2005. He started in fire service in 2000
as a cadet with Central Lyon Fire. After graduating from Fernley High School, he went to work
as a seasonal wildland firefighter for the Nevada Division of Forestry. He became a full-time
firefighter with the Hawthorne Army Depot Fire Department until joining North Lyon Fire
Snyder holds a bachelor's degree in administration and is graduate of the National Fire
Academy's Managing Officer Program and he was appointed to the Board of Fire Services by the
Governor of Nevada. Since 2011, Snyder has represented both North Lyon Fire and the
community of Fernley at the Nevada Legislature and in Washington, D.C., advocating public
safety and firefighter interests.
Outside of his professional life, he enjoys hunting, camping, hiking, and traveling and
participates in a variety of civic activities.
Mendoza began as a volunteer with North Lyon Fire in 2011. He also became a reserve
firefighter with Central Lyon Fire from 2015-2018 and he became a full-time firefighter with
North Lyon Fire in 2020.
He is also a Fernley City Councilman representing Ward 5, a local business owner and is a few
credits away from completing his degree in construction trades.
Outside of his professional life, Mendoza serves internationally on mission trips to build homes
in underprivileged communities. He is a die-hard fisherman and regularly enjoys saltwater
fishing in the warmer waters of the Pacific Ocean.
McCoy also began as a volunteer with North Lyon Fire, in 2007. In 2008, he became a seasonal
firefighter for a handful of seasons with Nevada Division of Forestry and East Fork Fire
Protection District. In 2010 he became a fulltime firefighter with North Lyon Fire.
His is working toward completing his degree in fire science.
Outside of his professional life, McCoy enjoys camping, fishing, hunting, and playing Jurassic
Park, freeze games, safari, and whatever new games are made up by his son.
When the district reorganized its operation effective June 2, 2024, the reorganization included a
shift officer, or acting battalion chief. All of the district’s six captains rotated bi-weekly as the
acting battalion chief for the remainder of 2024. Then, effective this past January, captains
rotated every three months.
In April, Fire Chief Brian Bunn said the captains rotating in the battalion chief position gave the
district covering in leadership positions 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
“They’re working out of class right now, and they shouldn’t be,” Bunn said. “They’re willing to
do it for that 24-hour-a-day, seven-day supervision.”
The district said the total base expenditure to promote three battalion chiefs would be $1,386.84
in base wages, with an additional Public Employees Retirement System (PERS) rate of
$13,036.30 annually.
According to the job description approved by the board, the battalion chief is responsible for
planning, organizing, directing, coordinating and supervising activities on an assigned shift,
which includes management of personnel, fire prevention and training. The battalion chief also
performs administrative duties that may include the work of specialized functions within the fire
district including operations, EMS, training and safety, program and policy review and
development, and providing staff assistance to the fire chief. The battalion chief will perform
duty officer responsibilities and work closely with mutual aid partners. The battalion chief may
also act as the chief officer of the district in the absence of the fire chief.
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