Fire Marshal Ron Tisius has started working for a new firefighting agency after more than two decades with the High Ridge Fire Protection District.
Tisius is now an inspector for the Metro West Fire Protection District, and High Ridge Fire has promoted Jason Schaub, who had been an inspector for the district, to take over as fire marshal.
Tisius’ final day with High Ridge Fire was Aug. 14, which he called a “bittersweet” moment.
“With heartfelt gratitude, we thank Fire Marshal Ron Tisius for 21 years of dedicated service to the High Ridge Fire Protection District and the High Ridge community,” the fire district said in a recent Facebook post. “Over the years, Ron has served in many capacities for our district —including firefighter, lead engineer, and shop steward — always bringing dedication and professionalism to each role. His commitment to fire safety and tireless efforts teaching children in our schools have made a lasting impact.”
Schaub has worked with High Ridge Fire since 2019, and the fire district’s Board of Directors approved his promotion on Aug. 5. Schaub was sworn in as the fire marshal that same night.
“Ron did a really good job of mentoring me,” Schaub said. “I’ve been doing all the commercial inspections for the past six years now, and the residential inspections, so I’ve got a good rapport with everybody in the public. I love to help the community, and we want our businesses to thrive.”
‘Sam Splint’
Tisius, 47, of High Ridge started his career in fire service with the Cedar Hill Fire Protection District in 1995 as a junior volunteer firefighter, before moving to High Ridge Fire in 2005, when he was hired as a full-time firefighter.
“I wanted to be that person who could protect people and help in their time of emergency,” Tisius said. “(Volunteering) gave me that opportunity, and once I started, I thought ‘I’ve got to find a way to do this for a living.’”
At High Ridge Fire, Tisius began carving out his niche as a firefighter who communicated well with the community, especially with students at local elementary schools, and endeavoring to make fire safety fun. He often brought a band of puppets with him to help with class lessons or appeared at community events as his alter ego, Sam Splint, complete with mullet, mustache and sweatband.
While a SAM Splint is a handy device first responders use to support a fractured or broken limb, High Ridge Fire’s Sam Splint is a rock star who can pump up the crowd at local events like the fire district’s annual 5K or the Northwest School District’s first responder ninja warrior competition.
Former High Ridge Fire Marshal Ron Tisius speaks to a crowd as his rock star alter ego, “Sam Splint.”
“Honestly, I don’t really know how I came up with the idea of putting on a wig and being goofy – I wanted something to entertain and engage with the folks in our community, and it just kind of stuck,” Tisius said. “I enjoyed the heck out of it. I’ll probably still do it with High Ridge (at community events).”
Tisius was promoted from engineer to fire marshal in 2016. There are three main duties of a fire marshal, he said, including investigating fires, inspecting new buildings for potential fire hazards and educating the public about best practices to prevent fires.
“I look at the job not just as public safety, but as helping my community,” Tisius said. “These are my neighbors, my friends. I wanted to be able to come in, whether it was a new construction, a remodel, or an existing building, and help educate people.”
Tisius and his wife, Stefanie, have an 8-year-old daughter named Harper. Stefanie is the librarian at Murphy Elementary School.
While Tisius is working elsewhere, he said he won’t be a stranger to High Ridge, promising to bring his Sam Splint character to future events.
Tisius was paid $45.33 per hour at High Ridge Fire and is now earning $48.08 an hour at the Metro West district, which covers 57 square miles in Ballwin, Chesterfield, Ellisville and Sherman.
Deputy Chief and fire marshal Joe Haefer said Metro West is “extremely happy” to welcome Tisius to the team.
“Ron’s years of experience as Fire Marshal with High Ridge and his broad fire service background will be a tremendous asset to Metro West,” he said. “His knowledge and professionalism will help us continue our mission of providing exceptional service and community protection.”
Tisius joked that Schaub “has everything but the wig” to fulfill his new role.
“I’m moving on to help myself with growth, and some other things for me and my family, but at the same time, this is my community,” Tisius said. “High Ridge is great; it’s a wonderful place. Jason’s going to do a great job. He came in with a wealth of knowledge on codes and inspections.”
New opportunity
Schaub, 55 of Imperial worked for the Antonia Fire Protection District for 29 years before joining High Ridge Fire in 2019. He said becoming the district’s fire marshal has allowed him to spend more time with family. Schaub has a wife and three children.
“When I turned 50, (High Ridge) gave me the opportunity,” Schaub said. “I’m like, ‘You know what? This could be really good because I love helping the community. I also don’t work holidays now, whereas before I was working on the truck during birthdays, holidays or anything else.”
Schaub was paid $30.34 an hour as an inspector and is now being paid $39.64 per hour as fire marshal.
The new High Ridge fire marshal, Jason Schaub, is sworn in.
As fire marshal, Schaub completes regular safety inspections for commercial structures, verifying that the building has working emergency lighting and alarm systems and that fire extinguishers are up to date and working properly, among other factors. Schaub said the fire district works with business owners, often giving them a month to fix any issues found during inspections.
For hazardous issues, the district usually gives a business two weeks to fix the problem before the building is reinspected.
“We just want to verify that everything is safe for the public to actually be in there,” Schaub said. “Most of the time, when I explain issues with business owners, they are more than willing to go in and fix the issue. When I’m out doing inspections, like at restaurants, I’ll spend an extra 15 minutes going over safety precautions. (For example), if the kitchen staff had never used a type K fire extinguisher, I’ll show the process of doing that.”
Another facet of the job, fire investigations, happens after a fire has been put out.
Schaub said when he’s investigating a fire, he first interviews the firefighters on the scene to figure out where the fire may have started and why. He then inspects the structure and interviews the occupants or eyewitnesses.
Schaub said an investigation is like “piecing a puzzle together.”
“We start on the outside of the house and work our way in,” he said. “There are some cases where (the cause of the fire) is undetermined. You can figure out where it started, but you can’t figure out what started it.”
Schaub said he will continue to teach fire prevention and safety in his fire marshal role. He teaches a CPR class, along with a few others from the district and helps to install smoke detectors in homes across the district.
Fire Prevention Week is Oct. 5-11, and Schaub said he will visit all the schools in High Ridge Fire’s coverage area during that time, teaching students fire safety.
“Fire prevention is one of our number one things,” he said.