WILMINGTON, Del. — The union that represents a Delaware fire department submitted a letter Thursday asking for the city’s help in removing the current fire chief.
DelawareOnline.com reported the letter was the result of a vote in which 97 percent of the union members from the Wilmington Fire Department said they have no confidence in Chief Anthony Goode’s ability to lead.
“It is with great regret that we report to you that the Wilmington Fire Department is broken and we need the help of our honorable elected leaders to fix it,” the letter said. “As such, we are respectfully requesting that the City of Wilmington take action and that Chief Goode be removed from his position as chief of fire of the Wilmington Fire Department.”
The union’s letter said members of the department were afraid to file complaints against Goode for fear of retaliation. When firefighters did file a complaint, it was largely ignored.
“In one instance, a member filed a complaint against Chief Goode with human resources and did not receive a response for nearly six months,” the letter said. “In the response, employee relations advisor Elinza Cain stated ‘please be advised that while your complaint of harassment is unsubstantiated, it was determined that some of the behaviors exhibited by Chief Goode were not representative of what is expected from an executive leader employed by the City of Wilmington.”
Mayor Dennis Williams’ spokeswoman issued a statement about Chief Goode.
“As the leader of the Wilmington Fire Department, Chief Goode has increased the training and educational opportunities for the firefighters as well as acquired new equipment, apparatuses and gear for the entire fire department,” the statement said. “Both the chief and the union were able to stand together in past, and hopefully will be able to reconcile their differences moving forward.”
The letter also accused Goode of bringing guns to work, prioritizing saving money over safety and using his position to persuade people to vote for political candidates, according to the report.
Goode said he believed the mayor would support him but had no further comments.