LV fire chief, under fire, hopes for business as usual

Monday, Oct. 21, 2002 | 9:30 a.m.

On the heels of a decision by Las Vegas Fire and Rescue employees to hold a no-confidence vote on Chief David Washington and two other top officials, department leadership is trying to take a business-as-usual attitude.

Local 1285 voted last week to take a no-confidence vote on the performance of Washington, Deputy Chief Jeff Morgan and Assistant Chief Eugene Campbell. Of the union's 490 members, 124 voted, about 80 percent of whom favored a no-confidence vote in the next three weeks.

"I'm not surprised by the results," said union head Dean Fletcher, who has said in recent weeks that many firefighters are upset with the way Washington is pushing the issue of diversity since becoming the department's first black fire chief last year.

The no-confidence vote, if it comes down against the officials, would have no bearing on their jobs, but it would be the most significant display of what has been a growing divide between firefighters and top brass since Washington was promoted to chief in August 2001.

Washington said Friday that he wants the controversy to detract as little as possible from the department's task at hand: fighting fires.

"My main thing right now is to continue to provide a service, which is public safety," he said. "This (vote) can be a distraction, but it comes with the territory."

The fire chief sent a memo to the department's 12 fire stations late last week, telling the department's 633 employees to "... continue to deliver the highest level of service and commitment to the citizens we serve."

The memo goes on to say, "... the situation is not all bleak," and that "... our department will be stronger in the long run."

The vote came after a class on diversity given to rookies in July that the rookies said made them uncomfortable.

The 2 1/2-day class was suspended after several hours and is now under review by the city's human resources department. Meanwhile, a training session for 49 new rookies scheduled for last Wednesday has been postponed, pending the completion of the review, Fletcher said.