By MES Dispatch Staff
The Briefing
- The City of Lynchburg, Va., released a 104-page independent organizational assessment of the Lynchburg Fire Department on June 10, 2026, conducted by consulting firm Raftelis at a cost of $189,500, following a period of public controversy and leadership vacancies that included the retirement of Fire Chief Gregory Wormser last December.
- Only 42% of survey respondents said they trusted upper-level fire department leadership, and only 38% said they believed communication within the LFD was effective; the survey drew a 77% response rate from the department’s 200-plus employees.
- Raftelis found a significant workforce diversity disparity: in a city with a 26% Black population, only 7% of the LFD’s workforce is Black, and the report stated the gap will not close through the department’s current passive recruitment model.
- The report recommends two new full-time positions — a command-level civilian human resources manager at approximately $102,000 annually and a training coordinator at the lieutenant or captain level at approximately $80,000 annually plus benefits — with City Manager Wynter Benda planning to request both in a FY2027 budget amendment.
- Newly selected Fire Chief Brad Creasy, who has more than 30 years of experience in fire and emergency services, is scheduled to begin July 1, 2026; Raftelis officials told the Lynchburg City Council that full implementation of the report’s recommendations will require at least five years and multiple budget cycles.
LYNCHBURG, Va. — The City of Lynchburg released a 104-page independent assessment of the Lynchburg Fire Department’s culture, hiring practices, and organizational structure Tuesday, a $189,500 study commissioned from consulting firm Raftelis that found significant deficiencies in leadership trust, internal communication, discipline consistency, and workforce diversity — findings that are expected to serve as a reform framework for incoming Fire Chief Brad Creasy, who is set to begin July 1.
The assessment was initiated as Lynchburg worked to fill top leadership vacancies in the fire department and rebuild following a period of heightened public scrutiny. In November 2025, videos and an audio recording purportedly of LFD firefighters using racist language — and in one case, threatening a woman’s life — went viral on social media. Shortly thereafter, Fire Chief Gregory Wormser, who had served the department for 30 years and as chief for seven, was placed on administrative leave. The city announced his retirement in December 2025. Raftelis vice president Jonathan Ingram noted in a letter accompanying the report that these circumstances created “the urgency and the opportunity for an honest, independent look at the department’s culture, processes, and personnel systems.”
Raftelis conducted a department-wide survey in February, receiving responses from 77% of the LFD’s more than 200 employees — a rate described by firm officials as unusually high. The firm additionally held 31 sessions in March at all eight of the city’s fire stations, meeting with personnel to gather candid assessments. Key findings presented to the Lynchburg City Council at its June 10 work session included that only 42% of respondents said they trusted upper-level leadership in the department, and only 38% believed internal communication was effective. The report also identified widespread perceptions of inconsistent and unfair discipline across the department’s ranks.
On workforce diversity, the report found that the LFD’s workforce is 7% Black in a city where 26% of residents are Black. Raftelis stated the gap would not close through the department’s current passive recruitment approach and called for intentional, sustained outreach to communities not currently represented in the department’s applicant pool, paired with departmental conditions that support retaining diverse employees after hiring.
Among the report’s primary recommendations was the creation of two new full-time positions. The first — a command-level civilian human resources manager — would serve as a strategic partner to the fire chief, provide consistent expertise in personnel management, and supplement city HR capacity. The estimated annual cost is approximately $102,000. The second position, a training coordinator at the lieutenant or captain level, would carry an estimated annual salary of $80,000 plus $28,000 in benefits. City Manager Wynter Benda said the city will request a mid-year budget amendment to fund both positions in FY2027 rather than waiting for the FY2028 budget cycle.
The report also addressed what it characterized as chain-of-command confusion stemming from the direct involvement of certain city council members in departmental personnel and operational matters — a dynamic the study concluded created accountability gaps and undermined the city manager’s authority. Vice Mayor and Ward III Councilman Curt Diemer took issue with that characterization, asserting his right to meet with fire department personnel. Raftelis’s Ingram responded that in a paramilitary organization such as a fire department, personnel operate as employees rather than constituents, and that operational matters should flow through the fire chief and city manager rather than through individual elected officials. City Manager Benda noted the concern was specifically about the effect such interactions had on personnel’s willingness to speak openly during the independent review process. Raftelis officials told council members that the report’s full recommendations will require at least five years and multiple budget cycles to implement.