Sandoval County Fire and Rescue promotes two battalion chiefs, four lieutenants

Sandoval County Fire and Rescue elevated six officers during a promotional pinning event the Friday before the Jan. 28 Sandoval County Commission meeting, the department said. Chief Chris Bagley described the gathering as the department’s first promotional ceremony and said it produced two new battalion chiefs and four new lieutenants.

"We had our first promotional ceremony Friday evening; we promoted two battalion chiefs and four lieutenants," Chief Chris Bagley said. Bagley told commissioners that the larger-than-usual promotion class grew out of vacancies that include positions to be filled in Cuba and the shuffling of assignments after his own move into the chief role.

At the Jan. 28 commission meeting, two of the promoted lieutenants were named publicly. Javier Galvan and James Pfeifer were recognized as newly promoted lieutenants, and families stepped forward to place pins on their lapels to signal the promotions. Commissioner Mike Meek addressed the chamber after the ceremony and thanked family members for their support. "I'd just like to again thank the families of these two gentlemen, who are now promoting to lead the fire department into the future," he said. "They can't do this without their family, and that family is in it a hundred percent, I guarantee you, and without them their jobs would be 10 times as hard."

Bagley said the promoted officers will serve as the department’s higher-ranking officials going forward. "The several promoted will be the 'white shirts' or higher‑ranking members of SCFR in the future," he said, indicating the move is intended to build an expanded leadership team across Sandoval County Fire and Rescue.

For residents, the promotions aim to preserve continuity in emergency response and to fill leadership gaps that affect station staffing and coverage. The reference to open positions in Cuba suggests some of the new assignments will help maintain or restore service across the county’s more rural areas. Chief Bagley and the commission did not provide names for the two promoted battalion chiefs or the two additional lieutenants at the Jan. 28 meeting; those details have not yet been released publicly.

Sandoval County commissioners highlighted the ceremony during their regular session in Bernalillo and emphasized the role of family and community support in sustaining the department. Officials said more information, including assignment details and any formal department release, may be provided through Sandoval County Fire and Rescue as the new leaders assume their duties.

The promotions mark a personnel shift intended to stabilize leadership after recent changes at the top of the department. Residents can expect to see the newly promoted officers take on supervisory responsibilities in coming weeks as SCFR finalizes assignments and integrates its expanded "white shirt" cadre into day-to-day operations.