"I had joined the industrial fire brigade, and my friend dragged me along to a training night at the volunteer service in Porirua. For some reason I got hooked on it."
It was at this time his work closed and he met his now wife.
"I sort of transitioned into Work and Income, then Winz, and Natalie was my trainer," he said.
It was with Winz that he learned the people skills he said made him a good chief.
"That's my huge enjoyment, working with people," he said.
"Managing time and resources, keeping things ticking over."
Mr Boag joined Ngongotaha Volunteer Fire Brigade in 2006, because "it was the only volunteer brigade near Rotorua".
"We always came here for holidays and I eventually thought why not make that holiday permanent. It's a bit more laid-back here, just an awesome community."
Mr Boag and his wife now have two children, son Regan, 10, and daughter Ashleigh, 7.
"I try to spend as much time with them as I can," he said.
"But, being chief takes up a lot of my time."
Mr Boag is passionate about progressing the volunteer string of the fire service.
"The brigade's like a family, we tend to do everything together," he said.
"We don't get paid for what we do, but the volunteer sector makes up the majority of the fire service. We all support each other."
Mr Boag said it had been a tough few years as acting chief.
"We've got 29 in our brigade, so we're a bit over, and a waiting list with five people," he said.
"We're really busy, and being chief is a huge responsibility."
In the torrential downpour of last week Mr Boag said some of his team didn't make it home until 2am because they were out helping residents.
"It's not about being a leader, it's about being part of the team, and just teaching people what I know."
Mr Boag said now he was chief he wanted to develop a better relationship with the community.
