NEWTON COUNTY – As 2024 rolls on, the Newton County Fire Department is continuing the search for its next fire chief.
In November 2023, the county terminated fire chief Michael Conner, along with fire inspector Glenn Mikos. No official reason was given for their respective terminations.
The fire department previously purchased dive equipment from Into the Blue Scuba, LLC, a dive shop owned and operated by Mikos. It was reported that this prompted an investigation into a potential conflict of interest.
According to Newton County public information officer Bryan Fazio, Conner was on paid administrative leave from Oct. 19 to Nov. 2. Conner was terminated following his paid administrative leave, with Mikos being terminated on Friday, Nov. 3.
On Nov. 6, Newton County public information officer told The Covington News that the county was looking to initiate the search for its next fire chief.
“We’re [Newton County] confident that the men and women of our fire services will continue to provide the safety and services they are so well noted for as we move forward and begin the search for our next fire chief,” Fazio said.
But after two months of no updates, the fire department has yet to name a new fire chief.
The News reached out to Fazio once again for further updates on the search, as well as to ask who is currently running operations.
According to Fazio, the fire chief position is currently being filled on a “rotating basis.”
“The person overseeing the day-to-day operations in fire services is on a rotating basis among the senior leadership within the department under the direction of the County Manager [Harold Cooper],” Fazio said.
In regards to a permanent replacement, Fazio stated that the process is currently underway and that applications are currently being reviewed, with interviews approaching soon.
“To fill the fire chief role, Newton County conducted a comprehensive search for a new chief and we are currently reviewing applications with interviews scheduled to occur later this month,” Fazio said.
