NTFI Leadership Team

Jim Hill - Owner/ Director

Owner/ Director
PO Box 1588, Monterey CA 93942

831-624-2719 / phone

Jim Hill founded the company in 1986 with just one bulldozer and has built NTFI into one of the largest contract emergency response organizations in the world.

"The success of our team is built on the dedication of our employees; the greatest equipment cannot be used to its potential without equally great firefighters and operators to handle the equipment in a safe, aggressive and accountable manner."

Mike Armstrong - President and Chief Executive Officer

President and Chief Executive Officer
Bldg 4528, A Street, Marina, CA 93933

831-582-3400 / phone

As the President and Chief Executive Officer for NTFI, Mike serves the Owner/Director and works closely with the company's Board of Advisors to develop and implement successful business strategies.

Mike is a 23-year US Army veteran who served as a combat arms officer and politico-military strategist. He completed two combat tours, served on the Army staff in the Pentagon, and is a graduate of the US Army War College. Following his Army career, for 16 years he served as general manager of three water management and water supply agencies in Monterey County, CA.

Mike's professional experiences have focused on executive leadership, management and organizational development. He has led the recruitment and the development of high performing teams; authored and implemented policies and strategies through effective collaboration among diverse interest groups; and, overseen the design and implementation of public works projects for water supply, flood control/flood warning, watershed protection, GIS mapping, environmental review, and enhanced technology platforms.

Steve Rife - Chief of Operations

Chief of Operations
Red Bluff, CA

530-528-9026 / phone

Steve took an early retirement after 31 years of fire control experience with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection to come to work for NorthTree Fire International. Steve performed as a Deputy IC and Operation Section Chief on a CDF Type 1 Incident Command Team for six years.

Mr. Rife has extensive experience in all aspects of helicopter firefighting operations, and finished his last three years as Administrative Division Chief for the CDF Tehama-Glenn Ranger Unit and the Tehama County Fire Department. His well rounded career in both Operations and Administration provides North Tree Fire and its customers with a very valuable, experienced and skilled employee.

Russ Kane - Chief of Special Services

Chief of Special Services

916-704-0140 / phone

Russell Kane oversees our Training and Education Division and Industrial Site Safety Services unit, which includes technical rescue and site safety services. Mr. Kane manages our All Hazards Planning Group which provides assistance to public and private sector clients with security, loss prevention, emergency response planning and business recovery planning. He specializes in target hazard planning which includes emergency response and evacuation planning.

Chief Kane has been active in the Emergency Services for over 23 years, holding progressive leadership positions in public and private sector organizations including the rank of Fire Chief. Russ has served 14 years in the private sector developing safety, environmental, and emergency response programs for such notable corporations as Synergistics Corporation, Hoechst Celanese Corporation, Bayer Corporation and Fisher Scientific Company.

Mr. Kane has trained over 4000 emergency service and private sector personnel and authored multiple facility emergency plans which include the evacuation sub set. Mr. Kane has conducted thousands of hours of training and presentations to audiences ranging from probationary Firefighter to Corporate Board of Directors. He has trained personnel in CA, NV, AZ, TX, SC, NC, NJ, NY, PA, MASS, ILL as well as Canada and holds several training licenses.

Mr. Kane received his Bachelor of Science in Environmental Planning & Design from Rutgers University, New Brunswick NJ in 1989 and is a graduate of St. Joseph's University-Philadelphia PA with a MS Degree in Public Safety Management. He also holds numerous Fire-Rescue-Hazardous Materials certifications and licenses. Chief Kane has served with distinction in the Fire-Rescue service receiving multiple personal and unit citations for meritorious duty including the response to the 9-11 attacks. Russ is a Qualified Environmental Professional and has authored several publications in the environmental safety and emergency response fields.

Flint Oliver - Fire and Rescue Manger

Fire and Rescue Manger

Mr. Flint Oliver currently holds the position of Fire & Rescue Unit Manager at NorthTree Fire International (NTFI). He is responsible for leadership, accountability, and supervision of all Fire & Rescue division personnel. In addition, he manages the contract administration of NTFI Engines, Tactical Water Tenders, Dozers, and Mobile Gel Plants. Mr. Oliver also coordinates all internal training for the Fire & Rescue division.

Mr. Oliver has 25 years of experience in wildland and municipal firefighting. He is a current member of NTFI's Confined Space Rescue Team and has helped design and build Portable Gel Plants for both fixed wing and rotary wing aircraft. Mr. Oliver was awarded the California Medal of Valor in 1996 by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the Firefighter of the Year Award in 1997 by Yuba County.

Jerry Ortega - Mechanical Treatment Manager

Mechanical Treatment Manager

Mr. Jerry Ortega currently holds the position of Mechanical Treatment Manager for NorthTree Fire International (NTFI). He is responsible for day-to-day field operations of fuel reduction equipment and personnel. His primary duties in prescribed fire include RX Burn Boss II and Ignition Specialist. Mr. Ortega has also held the position of Fire & Rescue Manager for NTFI.

Mr. Ortega brings 37 years of wildland fire experience, 28 years with the U.S. Forest Service, and 9 years with NTFI. During his 28 years with the U.S. Forest Service he held numerous positions within the agency. He began his career in 1969 on the Los Padres National Forest road maintenance crew then moved into wildland fire in 1972 as a Wilderness Patrolman. His career experiences in wildland fire include engines, hand crews, fire prevention, and prescribed fire. Mr. Ortega retired in 1997 as a Battalion Chief for the Tahoe National Forest.

Mitch Ward - Mobile Live Fire Trainer Manager

Mobile Live Fire Trainer Manager

Mr. Mitch Ward is the current manager of the Mobile Live Fire Trainer for NorthTree Fire International (NTFI). He is responsible for scheduling, booking, operations, transport, safety, maintenance, staffing, and customer relations pertaining to the Trainer. Mr. Ward is also a Heavy Fire Equipment Operator and is dispatched on a Fire Dozer or Water Tender.

Mr. Ward entered the Fire Service in 1982 and is a certified structural and wildland firefighter with Paramedic training and certificates in command, prevention, investigation, hazardous materials, heavy rescue, dive rescue, and breathing air systems In addition to his over two decades of experience, he is a former member of the Nevada County Sheriff's Search and Rescue Dive Team. He is a licensed SCUBA instructor in multiple specialties including Dive Rescue, Mixed Gas, Overhead Environment, Search and Recovery as well as other disciplines. He is a licensed California Real Estate Broker, has owned and operated several successful businesses, and is currently a small business owner.

Zeke Lunder - Mapping/Prefire Planning Manager

Mapping/Prefire Planning Manager

Mr. Zeke Lunder has held the position of Mapping Manager at NorthTree Fire International since 2001. During this time, Mr. Lunder has supervised and trained Incident GIS technicians, designed and built mobile GIS mapping facilities for incident mapping, and developed and implemented data management methods for onsite Incident Mapping contractors. He is a red-carded firefighter and NWCG qualified Geographic Information Systems Specialist (GISS).

Mr. Lunder has worked as a wildland pre-fire planner and GIS Analyst since 1996. He has over 3,000 hours of experience as a GIS Analyst for Type I and II Incident Management Teams on large wildland fires in the Western U.S. In this capacity he has mapped fire perimeters with aerial GPS, flown oblique aerial photography missions, and performed surface erosion/landslide hazard analyses for Burned Area Emergency Rehabilitation (BAER) teams. He has worked on large wildland fires in Idaho, Montana, Northern California, Oregon, Washington, and Minnesota. In 2003, he designed presidential briefing maps during the Cedar Fire in Southern California.

Mr. Lunder analyses wildfire hazard at the landscape-level. Publications include wildfire management plans for The Nature Conservancy, the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District, the Morro Bay National Estuary Program, and large timberland ownerships in the Pacific Northwest. In 2005 he developed a successful FEMA grant application which funded over $500,000 of wildfire hazard reduction work at University of California's Lick Observatory, at Mt. Hamilton. As a professional cartographer, Mr. Lunder has designed maps for textbooks and non-fiction books on wildfire. Cartography projects have included map illustrations for John Maclean's book "The Thirtymile Fire", and maps in the textbook "Fire in California's Ecosystems". Mr. Lunder holds a degree in Cartography/Geography from California State University, Chico.

Mike Filice - Fleet Manager

Fleet Manager

Mr. Mike Filice currently holds the position of Fleet Management Manager for NorthTree Fire International (NTFI). He has extensive experience in fleet management and equipment maintenance. Mr. Filice also works as one of NTFI's top dozer transport operators with many hours of fire line experience. He is responsible for NTFI's BIT and DOT programs that assure high quality operators and equipment certified by the California Highway Patrol and Department of Transportation.

Mr. Filice has been employed by North Tree Ranch for over 25 years as a mechanic and ranch manager.

Joni Greer - Dispatch Center Manager

Dispatch Center Manager

Ms. Joni Greer currently holds the position of Support Services Manager at NorthTree Fire International (NTFI). She is responsible for managing all personnel and training records, maintains the internal information database, manages the drug testing program, and assists with payroll and various other HR matters.

Ms. Joni Greer currently holds the position of Dispatch Center Manager at NorthTree Fire International (NTFI). Her responsibilities with the company include all Dispatch Center related matters. Ms. Greer came to NTFI in 2002 as a call-when-needed Incident Management Support Clerk and received training in ICS 100, 200 & 300. She has worked on many large incidents such as the Space Shuttle Recovery effort. She was a key player in the development of NTFI's dispatch center. After opening the dispatch center in February 2003, she held the position of Assistant Dispatcher through April 2006 at which time she was promoted to Support Services Manager. Ms. Greer held the position of Support Services Manager through August 2007 and was responsible for managing all personnel and training records, maintaining the internal information database, managing the drug testing program, and assisting with payroll and various other HR matters. Prior to coming to NTFI she was a Dispatcher for the California Department of Transportation.

Denise Harrigan - Administrative Services Manager

Administrative Services Manager

Ms. Denise Harrigan currently holds the position of Administrative Services Manager at NorthTree Fire International (NTFI). Her responsibilities with NTFI include all HR related matters, contract management issues which include leases and all bids and contracts the company pursues, business licensing, maintenance of insurance policies, and any other administrative services issues that may arise.

Ms. Harrigan brings to NTFI broad experience in federal and civil contracts management as well as small business ownership. She has expertise in strategic planning, project management, customer service, and administration. Ms. Harrigan holds a Master of Business Administration in International Management degree with a Specialization in German Studies and a Certificate in Business German, and a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies degree both from the Monterey Institute of International Studies. She also has an Associate in Arts in Interior Design degree from Monterey Peninsula College.

Bruce Suckow - Financial Manager

Financial Manager

Mr. G. Bruce Suckow currently holds the position of Financial Manager at NorthTree Fire International (NTFI). His responsibilities with NTFI include all financial related matters, budgeting, financial statements and other related fiscal activities.

Mr. Suckow brings his military experience as a Lieutenant Commander in the US Navy, where he served as a Supply Corps Officer. Serving on assignments on both ships and shore stations, his assignments carried him from the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Mexico, and many points in between. After his military career, he has held positions with Coca Cola Enterprises as an Operations Manager and as Director of Finance for several not-for-profit agencies in California. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from Willamette University in Salem, Oregon and his Master of Business Administration degree from Golden Gate University, San Francisco, California.