Category: In The News

April 14, 2023 Kansas City, KS Fire Chief Michael Callahan has been at the helm for nearly five years.

By Matti Gellman Source The Kansas City Star (TNS) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Kansas City, Kansas Fire Chief Michael Callahan announced his resignation Friday after serving as the fire department’s head for almost five years.

Callahan’s last day will be on April 28, according to the resignation letter obtained by The Star.

In the letter, Callahan urged Kansas City, Kansas fire crews to continue keeping each other safe and lauded the department for its talent and competency.

“Thank you for allowing me to be a small part of this illustrious department,” he wrote.

“I have learned and been taught many things during that time and I hope that you too have learned and been exposed to different ideas and ways of doing our job … It has been an honor and a privilege to work alongside you.”

The resignation marks the fourth reported Wyandotte County department head to resign over the last year. In September, both the Unified Government’s economic director and director of development coordination left their post within two days of each other.

Kansas City, Kansas Fire Department referred questions to the Unified Government, which did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Mayor Tyrone Garner declined to comment on the resignation.

Callahan told The Star Friday afternoon that he hopes the department continues to evolve after he’s gone. He’s happy with the legacy he’s leaving, he said, including implementing a policy to respond to collapsing high rise buildings and a defensive fire policy.

According to Callahan, his crowning achievement is that no firefighter responding to a fire he was in command of was seriously injured or killed.

But President JJ Simma of the International Association of Firefighter’s Local 64 chapter, which represents Kansas City, Kansas firefighters, disagrees, and told The Star Callahan’s resignation will be a “positive step forward” for the department.

The union leader has been critical of Callahan’s leadership. In a Friday afternoon phone call he told The Star that Callahan and other leading members of the department have “destroyed morale” and caused serious workforce retention and recruitment issues. Policies and procedures written by Callahan have also put both firefighters and the public’s safety in danger, Simma said.

“We’re excited and look forward to working with the Unified Government staff, future interim chief and, eventually, future new chief to help the KCKFD progress and right the ship from where we’ve been over the last few years,” he said.

“I’ll say this… I do not think we’re in a better or more positive place now then before [Callahan] came here.”

The fire chief

Callahan first arrived to the Kansas City, Kansas Fire Department in 2018 following a 38-year tenure with the Chicago Fire Department.

His wife had just retired from her job as a police sergeant. Both of them had pensions and were living comfortably when Callahan sat her down and expressed a desire to continue his career in public service.

“I said I think I still have something to offer in the fire service. I’m not quite ready to retire yet,” Callahan recalled. But this time he wanted to work in a smaller community, where he thought he could make a difference.

As fire chief, Callahan oversaw 18 fire stations, managing areas from emergency medical services to special operations. He remembered being excited by the kindness of community members and the talent at the Kansas City, Kansas Fire Department.

However, according to Callahan, he inherited a department where people were complacent and lacked discipline.

“Orders are given and orders are followed. Otherwise there’s chaos,” he said.

He contends that in his five years of service, he never issued an order that was unethical, despite concerns raised by union leaders.

“There’s a culture here where people believe if you ask a question, you’re disciplining them.” he said. “That’s not a culture I’ve ever known in fire service in the 45 years I’ve been doing this.”

Callahan explained that he first came at odds with some union members when he rewrote portions of the 1984 code of conduct and changed protocols involving discipline within the department.

He believes his leadership team should be remembered for promoting high ranking Black and Hispanic firefighters, though the administration has been accused of retaliating against employees reporting racial discrimination in a previous lawsuit.

“I do not retaliate against anyone,” he told The Star in response to the accusations.

He hopes he is remembered for providing more money to firefighters recruited to the service with a degree and increasing access to educational resources, such as additional training.

“Did I change things when I got here? Absolutely. Did they need to be changed? Absolutely.”

“There’s a saying that goes ‘Just because you can do something doesn’t mean that you should’… But there’s a corollary to that a lot of people don’t know… Just because you haven’t done something doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t.”

‘Bullying’ and ‘No confidence’

Callahan’s time in leadership did not come without controversy.

The IAFF’s Local 64 chapter, which represents Kansas City, Kansas firefighters, penned a December 2021 letter to former Mayor David Alvey and the Unified Goverment’s Board of Commissioners asking for the “immediate removal” of Callahan due to alleged “bullying tactics” and the department’s alleged mismanaged response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The union also issued a vote of “no confidence” in Callahan on January 2021. A letter announcing the vote added that Callahan’s “vindictive personality,” had been a distraction to the members of the fire department and called for an independent investigation into both the chief and deputy chief Jack Andrade.

Callahan was accused of retaliating against his employees in a June 2022 letter, where the national firefighter’s union threatened legal action if Mayor Tyrone Garner failed to “rectify the problems” within the department.

In the letter, president of the organization Edward A. Kelly cited concerns over “unanswered HR complaints, multiple discrimination allegations against department leadership… and reckless policy decisions that put both the public and firefighters at unnecessary risk.”

A 20-year veteran of the department, Leejamahl A. Washington, similarly criticized leadership in a January lawsuit, where he alleged senior officials sought to retaliate against him for raising concerns about discrimination at the department. Over the years, the lawsuit said, Washington had been threatened “repeatedly” for conduct that white employees did without reprimand. Near the beginning of his tenure, Washington said, he once saw co-workers wear “Nazi memorabilia” in a break room, and found a noose hanging in front of his locker.

Members of the department say the safety and work culture concerns have yet to be rectified.

April 14, 2023 Firefighter Frank Bolden, who wasn’t allowed to sleep or eat with white colleagues, retired as assistant chief..

By Shaddi Abusaid Source The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (TNS) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

When Frank Bolden became one of Atlanta’s first Black firefighters six decades ago, he wasn’t allowed to eat with his white colleagues, sleep in the same room or drive the big truck to emergency calls.

When the city integrated its police force 15 years earlier in 1948, the first eight Black officers had to change clothes in a separate facility. They worked only at night, patrolled only African American neighborhoods and arrested only people with the same skin color.

Things have changed drastically since then. Today, most of Atlanta’s police officers and firefighters are Black, much more representative of the city they serve.

But that wouldn’t have been possible if not for the public safety pioneers who broke the color barrier and helped pave the way. Those trailblazers were recently recognized for their contributions to the city.

As proud as Bolden was to become a firefighter, he quickly realized not everyone was thrilled to have him around.

“There were a lot of things we couldn’t do that other firefighters could,” said Bolden, who was among 16 Black firemen hired by the city in 1963. “But we were not gonna quit.”

It would be another 14 years before the city hired its first group of Black women firefighters, who came to be known as the “Magnificent Seven.”

Things got better with time, said Bolden, who is now 82. He quickly earned the respect of his white counterparts at Station 16, some of whom took him under their wing. He served for 32 years, reaching the rank of assistant chief before retiring in 1994.

Liz Summers initially had no desire to become a firefighter.

In the 1970s, the West Point native spent time working as a schoolteacher and basketball coach. She hoped to become a police officer, and even drove a police van while waiting for the city’s hiring freeze to be lifted. Then she found out the fire department was hiring and was encouraged to apply. It was a move that shaped the rest of her life.

Having worked in male-dominated industries before, Summers didn’t think much about making history at the time. Then she went to a firefighters’ convention the following year and everyone wanted to take her picture.

“It wasn’t until later on that I realized we were doing something special,” the 76-year-old told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

For Summers, fighting fires became a family business. Her son, Irving Reese, later joined the department and the two became the nation’s first mother-son firefighter duo, she said.

Summers spent 32 years with the department, reaching the rank of battalion chief. Her son retired as a captain.

Atlanta fire Chief Rod Smith said his department wouldn’t be what it is today if not for the courage of the Original 16 and Magnificent Seven.

“They faced discrimination, segregation, but never wavered in their commitment to serve the citizens of Atlanta,” Smith said. “Their bravery and dedication paved the way for all firefighters of color who followed in their footsteps, including myself.”

Atlanta’s first eight police officers also had a tough time. Many had served their country valiantly in World War II only to return home to the segregation and racism they’d known all their lives. The decision to integrate the police department was a political one, said Mayor Andre Dickens. Then-Mayor William Hartsfield faced a tough reelection bid and needed to win over more Black voters to remain in office.

The city council vote to hire Atlanta’s first Black officers was close, with city leaders eventually approving integration by an 8-7 margin.

At a public hearing before the vote, residents argued both for and against integrating the department, said police Chief Darin Schierbaum, who read through the old meeting minutes.

Those speakers’ names and sentiments were entered into the official record, but the clerk at the time quoted only one person directly: the Rev. Martin Luther King Sr., the pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church and the father of the civil rights icon.

The elder King told city leaders that “the hour and the time is now for change, advancement and courage.”

At a ceremony honoring those first hires, Schierbaum told the gathered crowd, “It was the oratory of courage from pulpits, from front porches and from community organizations that encouraged eight men to take that oath in service to this city.”

Descendants of the first Black officers were among those in attendance. They looked on proudly as city leaders praised their relatives for what they endured.

Tamaira Lyons, the granddaughter of Ernest Lyons, described him as a tough guy with a larger-than-life personality. He died in 2000 at the age of 80.

Lyons faced plenty of challenges as one of the first Black officers, including being called racial epithets by white members of the force. But the city’s Black community was proud of its officers, and Lyons developed deep ties with the residents on his beat, his family said.

“He loved the city and he loved being a police officer,” said Tamaira Lyons, who attended the event with five of her sisters. “But it’s amazing to think about how much has changed since then.”

Before joining the department, Ernest Lyons was a member of the Montford Point Marines, the nation’s first Black Marine regiment based in North Carolina. He would go on to become one of the city’s first Black detectives.

Lyons stayed involved even after his retirement. He worked part time for the city’s school system and later served as an honorary officer when the Olympics came to town in 1996.

“He was just a kid growing up in the Jim Crow, racist South,” his granddaughter said. “In becoming one of the first Black officers, he went on to fulfill a dream he had when he was just 9 or 10 years old.”

April 14, 2023 Families of responders who die of occupational cancer will be eligible for PSOB funds, if Congress passes it.

Source Firehouse.com News

The families of firefighters and other first responders who die of occupational cancer will be eligible for Public Safety Officers’ Benefits Program (PSOB) funds if Congress passes the Honoring our Fallen Heroes Act.

Congressmen Bill Pascrell Jr. (D-NJ-09), Rob Menendez (D-NJ-08) and U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-NJ) updated responders about that and other legislation during a meeting Thursday at North Hudson Regional Fire and Rescue.

President Joe Biden told the IAFF at their annual convention last month: “…I support it.  Congress should introduce it, pass it, and get it to my desk for me to sign it.”

His promise brought applause from those attending the legislative session. 

Just 17 days later, Pascrell and Carlos Giménez (R-FL-28) introduced the legislation in the House while Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND) proposed the bill in the Senate. 

During Thursday’s event, Pascrell, the longtime co-chair of the Congressional Fire Service Caucus, said: “Every day, thousands of firefighters suit up and put their lives on the line to keep our communities safe. These brave men and women encounter countless dangers on the job, including exposure to deadly carcinogens. Cancer is now the leading cause of death among firefighters and the federal government must have their backs.”

He noted that there was a special reason the meeting was being held at site. “We spoke at North Hudson Regional where they continue to mourn the loss of Eduardo Diaz to cancer six years ago. And it’s been nearly three years since we lost Paterson Firefighter, and my good friend, Jerry Behnke to this terrible disease.  I introduced the Honoring our Fallen Heroes Act to guarantee that first responders and their families get occupational cancer benefits without delay or red tape. Nothing less is acceptable.”

Biden also praised responders during his recent visit with the career firefighters’ union: “Look, no one is saying you didn’t know this was a dangerous profession when you joined it.  But that’s who you are.  It’s about helping other people.  Like I said to a coup- — a couple of you downstairs, I don’t know any other group of people who risk their lives to save someone’s home or property and the next day are out there on a corner with a boot raising money to help them rebuild their home.  Name me anybody who does that.  Name me anybody but you guys that do that.  It’s who you are.  You’re incredible.”

Sen. Menendez told group Thursday: “The Honoring our Fallen Heroes Act, would strengthen a crucial safety net that first responders and their families rely on and I look forward to working with colleagues to get this bipartisan common-sense measure passed swiftly in the Senate. Equally importantly, Congress must reauthorize the AFG and SAFER grant programs as soon as we return to session next week. These two programs are cornerstones of our effort to recruit and retain firefighters in New Jersey, and have distributed more than $200 million to communities throughout the Garden State since 2015.”

Congressman Menendez agrees: “Our firefighters and first responders selflessly put their communities ahead of themselves, often sacrificing their health and safety while doing so. That is why I am proud to co-sponsor the Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act, which would finally provide federal death and disability benefits to men and women who are stricken by cancer as a result of line-of-duty exposures. I want to thank Congressman Pascrell for his leadership on this issue and I look forward to working with him to pass this important legislation.”

The PSOB program provides a one-time federal death and disability benefit payment of $422,035 to first responders who die or are permanently disabled in the line of duty and monthly education assistance of $1,401 for their children or spouse. While medical conditions like heart attacks, strokes, and COVID-19 are presumed to be line of duty deaths for the purposes of PSOB, occupational cancer is not.

In 2015, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) published a multi-year study which found that firefighters are 9% more likely to develop cancer and 14% more likely to die from cancer relative to the general population. Last year, cancer was the leading cause of death among firefighters, accounting for 74% of line of duty deaths according to the IAFF.

On July 9, 2018, legislation sponsored by Rep. Pascrell and Sen. Menendez creating a firefighter cancer registry for the first time was signed into law. Their bill required the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to create a national cancer registry for firefighters to monitor and study the relationship between career-long exposure to dangerous fumes and toxins and the incidence of cancer in firefighters so to develop better protective gear and prevention techniques.

In 2016, Pascrell and Sen. Menendez first announced the Firefighter Cancer Registry Act in May 2016 during a news conference at Clifton, New Jersey Fire Station 5, where they were joined by dozens of firefighters, including retired Haddon Heights Fire Chief Gene Dannenfelster, who later lost his battle with cancer.

The Honoring Our Fallen Heroes Act is endorsed by the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC), National Fallen Fire Fighters Foundation (NFFF), Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI), Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO), Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association (FLEOA), and Sergeants Benevolent Association of the NYPD (SBA).

April 13, 2023 Sussex Firefighter Tony Duivenvoorde was described as a ‘dedicated servant.’

Source Firehouse.com News

A Sussex firefighter died Wednesday after responding to two emergencies.

Tony Duivenvoorde was a longtime firefighter and life member, according to a Facebook post from Sussex Borough NJ.

“Tony served our community for decades as a member of the Sussex Fire Department. I had the privilege of working along side him many times over the years. He was indeed a dedicated servant and an absolutely terrific gentleman,” officials wrote.