Columbus will lose its top firefighter two months after losing its top police officer.
The second -- and final -- five-year term of Fire Chief Ned Pettus Jr. is set to expire on March 24, the city's Public-Safety Department says.
"That is the tentative date that we've heard," said Amanda Ford, assistant director of public safety.
Pettus, 60, could retire or request reinstatement to a previous rank he has held once the term expires, which is allowed under civil-service rules. He has not yet filed a letter formalizing his retirement or indicated to Public Safety that he hopes to stay on at a lower rank, Ford said.
Pettus could not be reached today for comment on his plans. He is paid $151,091 a year, the city says.
Columbus limits police and fire chiefs to 10 years in the job. Just as only internal candidates can be considered for the job of police chief, the next fire chief will have to come from within the Fire Division.
Minimum qualifications require that fire-chief candidates have a bachelor's degree and either a year as an assistant chief or five years in any combination of assistant chief, deputy chief and battalion chief.
The Fire Division has about 20 of those chiefs, although it was unclear today how many of them also have a college degree or the required years in the specified jobs.
The city is selecting its next police chief. Four deputy chiefs have applied to replace Chief Walter Distelzweig, who retired this month.
Pettus joined the division in 1977. He first worked in the Clintonville and Linden areas.
After his promotion to captain in 1991, Pettus wrote and developed the standard operating procedures for the fire investigation unit, now known as the professional standards unit.
He became a battalion chief in 1993, a deputy chief four years later, and assistant chief in 2001. In the last role, he oversaw the fire prevention bureau.
He was named chief on March 26, 2002, and is the first African-American to lead the division.
He graduated from Linden-McKinley High School and from Capital University with a bachelor's degree in political science and public administration.
Copyright 2012 - The Columbus Dispatch, Ohio
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
