CHOUTEAU, Okla. — The Chouteau community is relying on mutual aid after several members of its volunteer fire department, along with its full-time chief, resigned during an Oct. 13 Chouteau Town Council meeting.
The meeting agenda listed executive sessions followed by votes to terminate and replace Fire Chief Amber Williams, Police Chief James Turner, and Assistant Police Chief Sam Tortet, 2 News reported. No reasoning was given.
Turner told 2 News he learned of his potential public firing over the weekend on Facebook, while Williams said she saw it in the agenda posted on Oct. 9.
“I have no disciplinary actions on my record. I have no write-ups. Nothing,” Williams said. “We can’t fix a problem we don’t know about. But putting people on the agenda and intimidating them and bringing their name through the mud? That’s not how you do things.”
Town Attorney Ben Sherrer said at the beginning of the council meeting city leaders could not proceed with those agenda items because the three department leaders had not been properly notified of the council’s plans.
Fire captain Doc Renner read his resignation letter during public comment. After public comment, at least 11 of the 17 volunteer firefighters turned in their radios in a show of resignation, News On 6 reported. The community gave the firefighters a standing ovation, then jeered town leadership.
The Chouteau Fire Department provides 24/7 fire protection and emergency response services for the Chouteau area, according to the town website. It is a combination department with two full-time firefighters and 20 part-time firefighters.
The department is funded by the town of Chouteau for service within city limits, as well as through annual fees paid by rural residents.
Williams and Mayor Brenda Cunningham then clashed over responsibility for firefighter pension dues, after which Williams cited a history of ignored hiring needs and announced her own resignation.
Cunningham has previously defended the town’s management of the fire department on social media. She addressed an earlier fire department budget and hiring dispute in a Sept. 1 Facebook post.
Cunningham said the fire chief had asked for two additional paid firefighters during budget discussions, and the committee agreed to budget $19 an hour plus benefits for two full-time positions, adding $100,000 to the department’s budget, though the positions were not guaranteed. She noted town employees typically receive a $1-an-hour raise each July, and this year was no different.
According to Cunningham, Williams met with her and the town administrator before a board meeting to discuss a hiring request and raises for herself and the department’s other full-time firefighter. At a subsequent special meeting, Williams sought to hire her brother at $25 an hour, above the $19 budgeted, and requested a $5-an-hour raise for herself and the other firefighter, on top of a $1 raise already given since July 1, for a total $6-an-hour increase. The board did not approve the raises or new hire, wanting to give the new town administrator more time to assess the situation, Cunningham said, adding that changes to Mayes County’s 911 dispatch system were expected to lower call volume.
She said the board never indicated the positions wouldn’t be filled, only that more time was needed to make an informed decision, and said the town remains invested in the fire department’s success.
“Any calls that come in from this point on are gonna be relying on mutual aid,” Williams said. “We’re all short-staffed. Every department is short-staffed. And now you’re pulling even more resources from other departments. So yeah, I mean, it affects everybody. It’s not just us.”
Police Chief Turner told 2 News he is not resigning, despite the council having considered firing him multiple times in past meetings.
