A new fire chief took office last week just days after five police officers were killed in an ambush and the city was reeling from tragedy.
“You don’t expect to get hired on a job and have five funerals to attend immediately, and that’s heart-wrenching,” said enw Chief David Coatney.
Coatney was hired as chief of Dallas Fire-Rescue after serving as the chief for Round Rock near Austin. He had previously served in the San Antonio Fire Department for more than 25 years.
He said the safety of the community and firefighters are a top priority. He has heard from firefighters who are concerned about their safety in the aftermath of the police ambush, he said.
“I’m proud of the work that Dallas Fire Rescue did, some of our members got into the middle of the event to assist with the rescue and recovery of some downed officers, and did they do it to their own peril? Yes sir, they did,” said Coatney. “I’m honored to work with these folks.”
A team is working on an “after action report” to take a close look at the best way to address those concerns.
They’re considering whether firefighters should go into certain types of calls with police escorts, and whether EMS and fire personnel should wait for police to arrive on scene, like some other cities do, among other safety precautions.