BLACK GETS NOD TO HEAD LAFD BARRY TO BECOME INTERIM FIRE CHIEF.Byline: RICK ORLOV Staff Writer A 31-year Los Angeles Fire Department The Los Angeles Fire Department (LAFD), also known as the Los Angeles City Fire Department to distinguish it from the Los Angeles County Fire Department. It is the agency that provides fire protection and emergency medical services for the city of Los Angeles. veteran, due to be named interim fire chief today, is set to become the first African-American to lead the department when Chief William Bamattre steps down next month. Fire Marshal fire marshal n. 1. The head of a department or office that is charged with the prevention and investigation of fires. 2. A person in charge of firefighting personnel and equipment at an industrial plant. Noun 1. Douglas L. Barry will take over the troubled department after Bamattre's retirement on Jan. 1, City Hall sources said Sunday. The same sources said Barry does not plan to apply for the job permanently. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was scheduled to make the announcement this morning at Fire Station 66 in southwest Los Angeles. Bamattre announced his early retirement last week after repeated controversy involving the LAFD LAFD Los Angeles Fire Department LAFD Los Alamos Fire Department LAFD London Association of Funeral Directors (UK) and allegations of racial and sexual harassment sexual harassment, in law, verbal or physical behavior of a sexual nature, aimed at a particular person or group of people, especially in the workplace or in academic or other institutional settings, that is actionable, as in tort or under equal-opportunity statutes. in firehouses. Barry will begin working with Bamattre immediately on the transition. Barry joined the department in 1975, working his way through the ranks as firefighter, engineer, battalion chief, chief of staff and assistant chief to Bamattre. A resident of Rancho Palos Verdes Rancho Pal·os Ver·des A city of southern California on a channel of the Pacific Ocean west of Long Beach. Population: 42,100. , Barry is married and has three children. Born and raised in the South Bay area, he attended Narbonne High School Nathaniel Narbonne High School (NHS) is a school located at 24300 South Western Avenue, in the Harbor City area of Los Angeles, California. Narbonne serves grades 9 through 12 and is a part of the Los Angeles Unified School District. , Los Angeles Harbor College Los Angeles Harbor College (LAHC) is one of two community colleges serving the South Bay region of Los Angeles. LAHC serves mainly students from Harbor City, Carson, San Pedro, Gardena, Lomita, Wilmington and the Palos Verdes Peninsula. and California State University Enrollment  , Long Beach. John Miller, president of the Chief Officers Association of command-level personnel in the LAFD, praised Barry and said he would help stabilize the department. ``We think he's the right man for the job at this time,'' Miller said. ``He has the respect of everyone in the department, and if anyone can help deal with the state of turmoil we are in now, it is Doug Barry.'' The department's latest scandal led to a proposed $2.7 million settlement for former firefighter Tennie Pierce, who is black and said he was the victim of bias, racial discrimination and retaliation after he complained about dog food being placed in his dinner, which colleagues said was a prank. Villaraigosa vetoed that settlement after pictures surfaced showing Pierce himself engaging in pranks. After first voting overwhelmingly to grant the $2.7 million to Pierce, the City Council then narrowly sustained the mayor's veto. The matter is now expected to go to court. Villaraigosa has issued an executive order in an attempt to end pranks, hazing or harassment in the LAFD and all other city agencies. Steve Tufts, incoming president of the United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, called Barry the right man for the interim job. ``He's a people person who has a sense of what is really going on and what's true and not true,'' Tufts said. ``He knows that 99 percent of the firefighters who come to work want to do a great job and are proud of what they do. There are just a couple who have created this problem for us.'' rick.orlov(at)dailynews.com (213) 978-0390 |
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