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Salisbury reorganizes fire leadership roles, names battalion chiefs for emergency management and safety; Chief Parnell honored for 40 years
Summary
City manager and Fire Chief Bob Parnell announced reclassification of two fire-department positions into battalion chiefs — one focused on emergency management and one on safety and training — and the council and staff honored Chief Parnell’s 40 years of service.
City Manager Jim Green and Fire Chief Bob Parnell on Jan. 21 outlined personnel changes in the Salisbury Fire Department that will reclassify two existing positions to battalion chiefs: one charged with emergency management and one focused on safety and training.
Chief Parnell said the change uses a currently vacant division-chief slot and an existing staff-captain slot to create the two battalion-chief positions, putting the roles “in line with other officers in the fire department with similar duties.” Parnell described the emergency-management position as aimed at strengthening planning and coordination for large public events, interagency work with law enforcement and county emergency management, and responses to severe weather and other emergencies.
City Manager Jim Green said the reclassifications are consistent with the council’s strategic focus on public safety and that the changes can be made through internal reclassification with relatively low budget impact; as manager he has authority to approve the personnel moves. The chief said the reclassifications address identified gaps in safety, training and emergency-event coordination and that additional staffing needs will be discussed at the council retreat.
Separately, the meeting included a multi-department recognition of Chief Bob Parnell’s 40 years with the fire department. Staff and colleagues described his operational leadership, station expansions, apparatus modernization and role in achieving an ISO 1 rating for the department during his tenure. Parnell told the council he felt “very, very honored” and said the success of the department “relies on every member that works at the fire stations.”
Ending: The personnel reclassifications will proceed administratively; staff said the emergency-management position in particular will be used to tighten planning and coordination for large events. The meeting concluded with tributes to Chief Parnell and a reception.
