UPDATED: Deputy Chief Kevin Burns to Head Framingham Fire Department

UPDATED: with photo of Kevin Burns by Petroni Media Company

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Framingham Town Manager Robert Halpin announced this afternoon that he has selected Deputy Chief Kevin Burns to serve as the Interim Fire Chief for the Framingham Fire Department. Deputy Chief Burns is a veteran employee within the Framingham Fire Department, having been appointed to the department as a Firefighter on August 8, 1988, and over the ensuing 27 plus years proceeded to rise through the ranks to become one of five Deputy Chiefs in August of 2004.

He is the most senior and experienced among the deputies in the department with over 27 years of firefighting experience, including shift commander, rescue and emergency management services operations in Framingham.

“In my discussions and interactions with the firefighters, officers and deputies within the department over the past
several months as we prepared for this transition, one sentiment was expressed over and over again: the desire that the Interim Chief be a seasoned, experienced leader in operations within the department. The men and women of Framingham face danger on a day-to-day basis and deserve nothing less than an Interim Chief in whom they will have confidence in calling the shots in those situations. Deputy Chief Burns clearly meets that test and will be able to handle all such situations with calm and clear command.”

“It is the officers & members of the Fire Department who do the work and who should get the credit, but I hope my experience and education will put them in a position to succeed at an emergency scene,” said Interim Fire Chief Burns.

Current Fire Chief Gary Daugherty is resigning as Fire Chief effective January 31, 2016. He has served as Fire Chief in
Framingham since 2009 and served as Fire Chief in Hopkinton and Hamilton, NJ. Overall, he has served in the fire and emergency services field since 1978.

“I wish to thank Chief Daugherty for his service to Framingham and his overall accomplishments in the fire service here in Massachusetts and New Jersey dating back to 1978. He leaves the Framingham Fire Department as one of the most highly regarded departments in the state and it is a department that excels in responding to a wide array of fires, emergencies, accidents and disasters that occur on a daily basis. I thank him for his contributions to the department.”

The Town Manager initiated a recruitment and selection process for a new Fire Chief and hopes to be able to appoint a new Fire Chief prior to next spring.