An elected commissioner of North Whatcom Fire and Rescue is suing his own fire district in small claims court over $1,000 in personal gear that went missing.
Meanwhile, the district’s fire chief questions whether the commissioner, Dean Berkeley, is even eligible to serve, in light of a statement he made at a city council hearing in July in White Rock, a border city in British Columbia just north of Blaine. At the hearing Berkeley introduced himself as a North Whatcom fire commissioner, and discussed how tighter borders have affected international firefighter relations since Sept. 11, 2001.
“My residence is on Russell Avenue,” a street in central White Rock, Berkeley told the council. “So I live here, but I work in Washington state. So this is my community.” State law says fire commissioners must reside in the district they serve.