Newark looking internally for next fire chief

The city of Newark will hire one of two internal candidates as its next fire chief.

According to Newark Mayor Jeff Hall, the city recently closed its job posting for fire chief, which was open to Newark's deputy fire chief and assistant fire chiefs. The posting comes after the previous chief, Patrick Connor, left his Newark post in January for a job as Plain Township's assistant fire chief.

More: Newark Fire Chief Patrick Connor to become Plain Township's next assistant fire chief

Hall said his mantra is to look for new candidates across the city internally. He added someone would have to prove why that wouldn't be adequate before he would look externally.

"If we don't have internal candidates, the system's broken," Hall said.

Newark Safety Director Tim Hickman said it's the responsibility of current leaders within city departments to develop their next group of supervisors.

Under Hall's administration, the city created a deputy chief position at Newark Division of Fire and three deputy chief positions at Newark Division of Police. Hall said those came into play well after former Newark Police Chief Steve Baum's death in 2020 and Connor's exit.

According to Hall, the two candidates under consideration for Newark Fire Chief are current Deputy Chief Brandon Metzger and Assistant Chief David Decker. Hall said their decision will be difficult because both are good candidates.

Metzger has served as Newark's interim fire chief since January. He's been with the department since 2004 and served as a lieutenant before being promoted to captain. He has managed the EMS division of the department and in that position formed a partnership with Ohio State University and brought in new devices to help with chest compression among other changes.

Decker is a 23-year veteran of the division and a 1989 graduate of Newark High School. He has certifications as a paramedic, fire investigator, Certified Fire Safety Inspector and fire instructor, according to Newark's website.

Hall said although he's constantly considering who would fill what position if needed, he likes to observe how a leadership manages a department in their previous chief's absence prior to his search for the next department head.

The mayor said he hopes to have a fire chief selected in the coming weeks after the candidates go through a testing and interview process.

This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Newark looking internally for next fire chief