By Bethany Rodgers
The Frederick News-Post
FREDERICK COUNTY, Md. — Frederick County’s former fire chief says she was forced out of her post this week in a development that “came out of nowhere.”
The county announced Thursday that Denise Pouget was leaving the Division of Fire and Rescue Services after about 20 months as its head. Frederick County Executive Jan Gardner would not say whether Pouget’s exit was voluntary.
In an interview a day later, Pouget said she did not leave of her own desire.
“I’m saddened, and I would never leave Frederick fire and rescue services on my own,” Pouget said Friday. “I’m just trying to figure all of this out because it came out of nowhere. Absolutely nowhere.”
Pouget also confirmed that her two deputy chiefs, Allen Keyser and Michael Grierson, were forced out of their jobs. At this time, the former fire chief said, she cannot comment further on the circumstances surrounding her departure.
However, she said, she wishes the best for the county’s firefighters. She said she was not afforded the opportunity to send the service a parting message.
Pouget added that she has received many expressions of support, especially from volunteer personnel around the county.
“I’m really worried about the firefighters because we have no stability in Frederick, in that we constantly go through this leadership change every couple of years,” she said. “I think we need to focus on safety and taking care of themselves, and I worry when we have all this drama that that’s what they focus on.”
Pouget’s predecessor, Tom Owens, served as fire and rescue services director for about three years.
The fire chief occupies a director-level post and serves at the pleasure of the county executive. The two deputies were appointees of the fire chief, according to county human resources staff.
Gardner declined to respond to Pouget’s comments, noting that the chief’s departure was a personnel issue. In a news release, Gardner thanked Pouget for her work and said the county “has benefited from her devotion and oversight of our division.”
The county executive did concede the legitimacy of Pouget’s concerns about lack of continuity in fire service leadership.
“I would hope to have stable leadership” going forward, Gardner said.
The former board of commissioners in July 2013 named Pouget as the county’s first fire chief, a post created to achieve greater cohesiveness between the volunteer and career personnel.
Gardner’s chief administrative officer, Doug Browning, will serve as interim fire chief until the county finds a permanent replacement. Gardner said she could speak more next week about the personnel changes in the county’s fire and rescue services.
Browning on Friday said Steve Leatherman, a captain in the fire service, is serving as acting deputy chief of administrative services, Grierson’s former position. No one has yet been named as an interim replacement for Keyser, who was deputy chief of operations, Browning said.
Pouget’s annual salary was $158,333 at the time of her departure. Keyser was making $116,263 per year, while Grierson was earning $116,632, according to the county’s human resources office. All three left their jobs with the county Thursday.
During her tenure, Pouget’s attempts to usher in changes drew pushback from certain members of the service, including the head of the career firefighters union.
Last year, John Neary, president of the Frederick County Career Firefighters Association, said he would permit a vote of no confidence in Pouget if someone suggested it during a union meeting. Neary faulted Pouget for a lack of communication that had caused low morale and confusion among the county’s firefighters.
At the time, Pouget said Neary’s statements reflected the frustrations of a few service members who were resistant to change.
On Friday, Pouget said she’s pleased with the safety measures she advanced during her tenure. Under her leadership, the service completed hose testing, replaced outdated breathing apparatus and improved records management, she said.
___
(c)2015 The Frederick News-Post (Frederick, Md.)
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC