Embattled Chief Retires After Firefighters Threaten Walkout

(KNSI) — The City of Princeton is looking for a new Fire and Rescue Department chief after the current chief handed in his retirement papers.

Department members gave Chief Ron Lawrence a vote of no confidence in December and delivered a letter to the council saying if he wasn’t removed, 33 of the department’s 36 workers would walk off the job as of midnight on February 8th. At Thursday night’s council meeting, the body accepted his resignation.

Issues had been going on for years, according to one department member. They questioned the process for how Lawrence was hired and voiced concerns about the lack of training and safety measures.

They alleged that Lawrence told the department about five years ago that “the city” wanted to create a more professional department, which they say came at an odd time. The person wrote that Lawrence made the announcement after he had been turned down for a leadership position with departments in at least three other cities. The city was accused of allowing Lawrence to write his job description and qualifications. They say it was also suspicious he was the only applicant and questioned whether the job was even posted and if the qualifications were written so he was the only person who would qualify.

Another issue the department had was that they were running off of facility preplans drawn up in the 1990s. Those show a building layout with a fire attack plan. Members said building layouts have probably changed quite a bit since then. That could make it dangerous for firefighters if they aren’t familiar with the layout and may delay operations.

Members said these didn’t exist before, but it’s approaching five years since Lawrence started as the paid full-time fire chief, and there are no set Standard Operating Guidelines. Those are used for, among other things, to teach and train firefighters how to use the equipment, how to protect against carcinogens that can cause cancer, and the rules for driving the trucks.

KNSI News learned almost every department has set SOGs.

The handbook for the department, they said, was also dated back to 2017. That serves as the governing rules of the department outlining eligibility, residency and training requirements, and governing, and must be reviewed, revised and approved by the council every two years.

Members raised issues with Lawrence’s lack of care and due diligence surrounding monthly maintenance and inspection records reviews. Firefighters go through the equipment, record their findings in a book, and are pulled out again during the next maintenance period, but they said he never opened the books, so items that needed attention were ignored. Lawrence would tell members there was no money in the budget or that he’d have a mechanic look at it and get a price. That means troublesome equipment or mechanical issues could persist, potentially putting firefighters in danger. They questioned why cost mattered and whether firefighter safety had a price tag.

The members also took aim at the city for approving a nearly 12% pay raise for Chief Lawrence and spending up to $17,000 to do a workplace assessment. They call it a waste of money, which could be better spent repairing equipment, replacing PPE, or providing specialized training for the department.

KNSI News contacted the department, Chief Lawrence, and the city administrator for comment.

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