East Wayne Fire District comes under fire; chief, assistants resign
DGKN staff report
MARSHALLVILLE The fire chief and two assistant fire chiefs issued their resignations this month without explanation and an interim chief has been named for East Wayne Fire District.
At the June 15 regular monthly EWFD meeting, which was at Klusch Hall in Marshallville instead of Station 2 because of the extreme heat, the board of trustees was divided on some issues.
When Board Chairman Ryan Sullivan asked for a “second” on a motion to accept the resignations of Chief Kyle Nussbaum and Assistant Chiefs Isaac Hull and Jonathan Downs he was met with silence. Board member Rick Peters said he does not approve of any of the resignations. Sullivan said the board had no correspondence with the chiefs since they tendered their resignation letters. Sullivan later brought the issue back to the table when board member Steve Rabatin brought up that a longtime member had sent an email offering to step in.
Following a brief executive session, the board appointed Donald Shilling, who has been with the department more than 35 years, to serve as interim fire chief for 90 days. He received applause from audience members after the oath of office was issued.
Nussbaum brought much knowledge and experience to the fire district. He joined Dalton Volunteer Fire Department as soon as he graduated from Dalton High School in 2002 and worked his way up gaining education and training and was chief for the past five years.
Under Nussbaum and also former chief Gary Martin before him, funding was obtained in recent years thanks to many grants that allowed for staffing and retention, as well as for equipment such as smoke detectors for all community members, radios, air packs, grass truck, and utility vehicle. Recently, EWFD was approved to receive funding to build an addition on its Dalton department. Voters also passed for the first time a levy in November 2020 which was renewed this year.
Marshallville Council member Leslee Booth stated during a public comment section that Nussbaum did a great job leading the department and he leaves a void. She welcomed Shilling but she said she wished things would have been different.
“He was a good chief and I really respected him for what he did for the community,” she said.
Read more in next week’s Dalton Gazette & Kidron News.
This is a shock and a huge disappointment. I, as well as many others, am tired of certain groups and individuals constantly criticizing EWFD. I do not blame the chiefs for resigning; you can only take so much criticism from people who are not even performing the functions of firefighters, paramedics, and EMTs. It’s all political, not practical. These people need to quit wasting our tax money on squabbling with those who are getting the job done.
DALTON RESIDENTS DON’T KNOW WHY THEY RESIGN, NONE OF US DO, BUT I WILL SAY OUR SON-IN-LAW STEPPED IN TO SAVE THE DEPT, AND THANK GOD HE DID THE DAY BEFORE THE MAJOR FIRE AT MARS HORSE FEED PREVIOUS BUCKEYE FEED. THE TRUTH WILL COME OUT ABOUT WHY THEY RESIGNED. GIVE DONALD A CHANCE TO STEP UP TO THE PLATE AND TAKE OVER JUST THE NIGHT BEFORE THE HUGE FIRE. tHANKFULLY NO WAS HURT AND HAD GREAT RESPONSE FROM WAYNE COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENTS VOLUNTEER FIREMEN TO RESPOND AND ALSO FROM STARK COUNTY DALTON HAD AT LEAST 10+ DEPARTMENTS THERE ALL NIGHT. I HAVE ONE QUESTION WHY DID THEY REALLY RESIGN FROM THE DALTON DEPARTMENT?
“People don’t leave bad jobs, they leave bad employers.”
The best thing that could of happened was for Donald Schilling to step in and lead EWFD during this concerning time . I understand it is a temporary fill . Wishful thinking would be that he would stay on full time for the district ! I also question why all 3 of the chiefs resigned. within days of each other. According to the minutes they did not give a reason or ask to appear before the board to discuss. Why was there no exit interview . They left the district without any Chiefs in place which is even more disturbing . For those 3 whom were so passionate about the dept . and well educated and trained , it makes a person wonder what was really going on behind the scenes that made them abrubptly lea hve. I agree , someday the truth will come out and we will all know
Donald Isn’t doing the best job from what i hear. he’s barley around. the members of the poor fire district have even voiced he cant perform his weekly duties. he is almost never present at the station from what i’ve been told.
see above comment