Fire Chief Rod Seals Announces Retirement
Retirement effective June 19, 2020
Rapid City, S.D. – On Friday afternoon,
Fire Chief Rod Seals announced to the members of the Rapid City Fire Department
his intent to retire, effective June 19, 2020. His retirement will mark the end
of a 25-year career. Seals delivered a letter indicating his intent to retire
to Mayor Steve Allender on May 14.
Rod Seals was appointed by Mayor
Allender to serve as the 18th Fire Chief in the history of the Rapid
City Fire Department on January 12, 2018. He was sworn-in to the position on
January 16, 2018. During his 25-year career, Seals has served in several
capacities. He was a member of the RCFD Specialty Rescue Team, Captain at Fire
Station 8 at the Rapid City Regional Airport, Battalion Chief, Fire Operations
Chief, and served as interim Fire Chief after the retirement of Mike
Maltaverne.
In his letter to Mayor Allender, Seals acknowledged
that budget concerns were the catalyst behind his decision to retire in the coming
weeks. “The forecasted budget ‘crisis’ has me very concerned”, he wrote. “And
since I am the highest-paid city employee that is eligible to retire, not doing
so would be hypocritical on my part, especially when given orders to encourage
those that can retire to do so in order to lessen our payroll expenses”, Seals
continued. Seals said that he hopes that, through his retirement, money will be
saved that “will help to stave off any potential future layoffs of employees.”
IAFF Local 1040 President Ryan Marcks
said that he appreciates Seals’ leadership. “Chief Seals has been a tremendous
leader for our organization”, Marcks said. “He was a great leader as the
President of our Union early-on in his career and he’s been a great leader as
Fire Chief. We especially appreciate his leadership during the COVID-19
pandemic. I think it is very, very admirable that his decision to retire is
driven by protecting the jobs of other employees”.
Seals wrote that his retirement decision
is bittersweet, but that he looks forward to seeing the growth and success of
the department into the future. “There are many smart and talented people that
work for the Rapid City Fire Department”, he said. “Their collective strength is
the backbone to the service we provide the community”.
For questions or comment related to this
release, please contact Jim Bussell, Public Information Officer for the Rapid
City Fire Department, at 605-394-4180.
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| Above: Fire Chief Rod Seals |
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