Battalion Chief Angelo Calvillo was sworn in Wednesday as the city's new fire chief, making him the first Hispanic person to head the city's Division of Fire.
Calvillo, a 27-year veteran who has steadily risen through the department's ranks, served as interim chief since October, when Chief Patrick Kelly resigned to head the fire department in Olmsted Township.
Calvillo, reading from a written speech during the ceremony at City Hall, said he was proud to take over "one of the best and most professional division of fire in the country," and promised to deliver "the best possible service under my power" to Cleveland residents and visitors.
The department has been rife with scandal for much of the past five years, including a large-scale payroll abuses that led to indictments against a dozen firefighters and a failed merger attempt with the Division of EMS.
The department's brass butted heads with the firefighters' union, International Association of Fire Fighters Local 93, at the peak of many of those issues.
Calvillo vowed Wednesday to work with the union and elected officials to "come up with more solutions than issues."