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Plano Fire Chief William Peterson,
is stepping down from the City's top
fire job to become the Regional Director
for the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA). Chief Peterson will be
the new Director for FEMA's Region VI,
which is based in Denton, texas and
includes the States of Texas, New Mexico,
Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana. Chief
Peterson served as Plano's Fire Chief
since 1982,
In an interview with the Dallas Morning
Star the Chief was quoted as saying
that he took the FEMA job because it
presents a "once-in-a-lifetime
opportunity" to improve the way
governments cooperate during emergencies,
such as last summer's Hurricane Katrina
and was further quoted as saying "The
relationship between local, state and
federal governments has to be improved
if the system is going to work more
effectively than it did last year (during
Katrina). The Chief went on to state
that he feels that he can "make
an impact."
FEMA has been widely criticized for
what many called a slow response to
Katrina and its aftermath in the months
since that disaster struck the Gulf
Coast of the united States.
David Passey, a regional spokesman
for FEMA, said Chief Peterson brings
a strong background in emergency management
as well as relationships with regional
public safety leaders. "He's really
got a career of experience that we're
anxious to take advantage of,"
Mr. Passey said. "He's lived in
Texas. He's worked in Texas. He's well-respected
in his community." The previous
Regional Director, Ron Castleman, left
in December 2004 to take a job with
an information technology firm and since
then, Deputy Regional Director, Gary
Jones has been serving as Acting Regional
Director.
Chief Peterson, 59, began his FEMA
job on Jan. 30th, the Chief has won
a number of national and international
accolades during his 23-plus years in
Plano. He served as international president
of the Institution of Fire Engineers
and was voted Fire Chief of the Year
by the International Association of
Fire Chiefs and Fire Chief Magazine.
Congratulations Chief Peterson!
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