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Firefighters polled about chief position
The township has been without a permanent fire chief since February.
NEW SPRINGFIELD — A recent survey shows almost half of Springfield Township firefighters don’t care whether a new fire chief comes from the fire department or is hired from outside.
But a majority said they would like to see trustees consult a panel of area fire chiefs before choosing someone to lead the department.
The survey was presented to trustees at their Nov. 12 meeting but not released until this week.
At recent meetings, firefighters have been pressing trustees to name a permanent chief. The township has been without one since February.
Jeff Martin, a 35-year department member who also is president of the Petersburg Firemen’s Association, presented the surveys to trustees along with a sheet summarizing results.
He said the idea of taking the survey came about because “a couple of us were talking and we decided we wanted trustees to know our opinion.”
Thirty-three members’ opinions were tallied in the survey and an additional five members filled out surveys but wanted them submitted in a sealed envelope and not tallied with the group.
Martin said the 38 surveyed represent the department’s active firefighters.
Interim Fire Chief Matt Gebhardt said after the survey was released that he and some other firefighters were never asked to fill out a survey.
He said the firefighter roster has about 70 names, and he disagreed that the number who filled out surveys represent the active members of the department.
The tally (with all totals rounded to the nearest whole number) shows that 42 percent believe a chief should be picked from the township fire department, while 9 percent say no, and 48 percent say it doesn’t matter.
Sixty-four percent believe a panel of area fire chiefs should be consulted before appointing a chief, and 52 percent believe the position should be full time. Eighty-eight percent want members of the fire department to be consulted on the hiring.
Seventy-six percent believe the chief should have management experience and a valid 240-hour basic firefighter certification card, although state law only requires firefighters in volunteer departments to have a 36-hour basic certification.
The department has been operating with Gebhardt as part-time interim chief since February when former Chief Brian Hughes resigned.
Hughes’ resignation followed his conviction by trustees on several misdemeanor charges stemming from an April 25, 2005, training exercise at a Garfield Road barn fire. Hughes resigned after returning from a 90-day job suspension imposed for the violations to find his full-time $41,130 position had been downgraded to a part-time position with no benefits.