Former Montgomery County Fire Chief Dies

Thomas W. Carr Jr., a 31-year veteran of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service who served as its first countywide chief, died Wednesday in Charleston, SC, the county fire and rescue service announced in a news release.

He was 59.

Carr suffered from complications from multiple system atrophy, a rare neurological disorder that causes symptoms similar to Parkinson’s disease. Ill health forced Carr to retire as chief of the Charleston Fire Department last year, the release said.

Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan (D) appointed Carr the first chief of a unified county fire and rescue service in 2004. His appointment followed passage by the County Council of controversial legislation that led to reform of the department’s command structure after a heated debate that pitted career firefighters against volunteer firefighters.

County Executive Isiah Leggett (D) reappointed Carr to the post.

“We are deeply saddened by the passing of Chief Tom Carr,” Leggett said in a statement released by MCFRS Thursday. “He leaves behind an extraordinary legacy and will probably be best remembered as a world class leader responsible for helping generations of firefighters and as the architect of the Nation’s Urban Search & Rescue Response System and the County’s Urban Search and Rescue Team. He compiled an unparalleled record of public service and achievements and his loss is deeply felt.”

County Fire Chief Richard Bowers said: “The fire service has lost a great leader and we’ve lost a great friend. Chief Carr was respected nationally and internationally. Under his leadership, the department added four-person staffing, collective bargaining for volunteers and raised education and training standards. He led the department’s successful efforts to become a nationally accredited fire department and was a man of great vision, passion and integrity who led from the heart. His impact will be felt for many years to come.”

Carr was named Fire Chief magazine’s 2010 Career Chief of the Year in recognition of his innovative approach in leading the modernization of the Charleston Fire Department.

In the magazine piece announcing the honor, a former Montgomery County colleague called Carr “a firefighter’s firefighter."

Click here to read the Fire Chief magazine article.

Carr took the reins of the Charleston Fire Department in November 2008, after retiring from MCFRS. He was named chief 17 months after a furniture store fire killed nine of Charleston's firefighters. The job took Carr back to where he was born and where his parents lived, The Gazette reported.

Carr announced in April 2010 that he was battling what doctors believed was Parkinson’s disease, but remained on the job until March 2012.

“Chief Thomas Carr was a great man who left a profound legacy,” Charleston Mayor Joe Riley told The (Charleston) Post and Courier. “His implementation of automatic aid in our region was transformative. He was an innovator in the fire service and made a great impact in our region.”

Click here for the full story from The Post and Courier.

Carr began his career in 1973 as an 18-year-old volunteer paramedic with the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad, according to MCFRS.

He was hired by the county fire service as a career firefighter/paramedic in 1977 and progressed through the ranks, becoming the first operational fire chief of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service in 2004.

“He was a long-standing advocate of the fire service, especially firefighter safety, and leaves a strong legacy of innovation and professionalism that will be felt for years to come,” the MCFRS release said.

Carr is survived by his wife Anne; son, West; daughter Amy; his parents; a brother; and sister.

A funeral is being planned in Charleston, the MCFRS release said.