He said the township is following the law in regards to complaints against its fire chief. Twelve employees of the Mad River Twp. Fire and EMS station resigned this week citing concerns that the chief and his senior staff were creating a hostile work environment.
“Ohio Revised Code very specifically spells out the process of what you have to go through if you are investigating a fire chief and looking at the possibility of discipline,” McClure said.
He said the process applies to every employee of the firehouse.
The trustees started the process when they elected to launch an internal investigation, McClure said. But during a regular meeting Monday night, the group that conducted the investigation did not recommend any administrative charges or changes in leadership. The investigation centered around the hiring and firing of a now former employee and accusations made against him when he worked for another fire department.
“You have to have charges as a result of an investigation to move forward,” McClure said. “There were no charges. It was a he-said-she-said situation and there was conflicting information.”
He said the lack of administrative charges effectively ended any possibility of discipline.
The Springfield News-Sun has requested a copy of the internal investigation but had not received it by Wednesday.
McClure said while the investigation into fire department leadership did not find enough evidence to warrant the proceedings to move forward, there are things that need to change.
“There are certain issues regarding hiring and communication from the department to us as trustees that will be corrected. We as trustees are committed to addressing these issues moving forward,” he said.
The 12 employees that resigned this week, which includes captains, lieutenants, crew leaders, paramedics and fire inspectors, that resigned makes up a large portion of the fire department’s staff. In total, they bring to the table about 200 years of combined experience. There are about 25 employees currently on staff.
The former employees released a statement to the community Wednesday through former employee Mike Gardone, who served as a firefighter and lieutenant, in the department that said they felt the work environment was hostile and they repeatedly felt ignored by fire leadership.
“We invite you all to express your concerns to those making these decisions, those leaders that ‘respect our difficult personal choices.’ We had to stand up for what is right for this community and we implore you to do the same,” the statement says. “Meetings are held at the firehouse on the first and third Monday’s of the month at 7:30 p.m.”
CONTINUING COVERAGE: Mad River Twp. set to launch an investigation into fire department
McClure said the department is working hard to cover all of its runs. He said the department had full staffing on both Tuesday and Wednesday. On Tuesday, the staff covered all 10 runs it was called to with a response time average of six minutes.
He said he feels confident the fire chief will be able to lead the department through a difficult situation.
Wendling has referred questions to McClure.
The department is working to get four new members onto the staff as quickly as possible, McClure said but will have to ensure they pass background checks and other requirements before they are allowed to work.
In the meantime, the department will work with surrounding departments to ensure every call is covered in a timely manner, McClure said. Those departments could include Hustead, Bethel Twp. and Fairborn. Requests for comments from their chiefs went unanswered Wednesday.
McClure said the department is working harder than ever to ensure the community is safe.
“I don’t want people to lose sight; we have a department to serve the community and that is our primary purpose — to help and take care of the community,” he said.
12: Members of the Mad River Twp. Fire and EMS Department that resigned this week
10: Number of runs by the Mad River Twp. Fire and EMS Department Tuesday
6: minutes it took the Mad River Twp. Fire and EMS Department to respond to those calls.
Continuing Coverage
The Springfield News-Sun first told you about the resignation of a Mad River Twp. fire lieutenant accused of sexual assault and has continued to cover the story since.
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