Ohio fire chief gets fired

July 8, 2009 at 7:00p.m.

SHAKER HEIGHTS, Ohio (AP) — The fire chief in an upscale Cleveland suburb has been dismissed for refusing the mayor’s demand to cut his budget to help trim a city deficit.

Fire Chief Donald Barnes plans to contest Monday’s dismissal by Mayor Earl Leiken. The mayor had asked the chief to cut $250,000 from the fire department’s $8.3 million budget as city departments trim costs to avoid a citywide deficit of $3.5 million.

Shaker Heights made budget cuts earlier this year, but the mayor says declining tax collections forced a new round of cuts. Starting this month, some Shaker Heights city employees will take every other Friday off as unpaid days.