City Manager Craig Owens announced today that Division Chief Tom Fagan will serve as the Interim Chief of Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical (LDCFM) after the retirement of Chief Shaun Coffey; effective December 18, 2021.
“Tom has done an excellent job serving our community at the Fire Medical department, and I am confident he will excel in the new role as Interim Chief,” said City Manager Craig Owens. “He will serve an integral role in our leadership team and provide a seamless transition for the department as we conduct our search for the new Chief.”
Fagan has been with LDCFM for four years, serving as Division Chief of Administration during his tenure. Prior to joining LDCFM, Fagan served 17 years with the City of Lee’s Summit, Mo. Fire Department.
“I am honored to continue serving our community and my fellow fire-medical team members in the role of Interim Chief,” said Fagan. “Chief Coffey has been a tremendous leader to follow, and I look forward to working with City and County leadership to support our great organization in providing excellent services to keep our community safe and secure.”
Chief Shaun Coffey announced in November his plans to retire at the end of 2021. He started his service with Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical in 1985, and was appointed interim chief in 2018 and chief in 2019 after a national recruitment.
“I want to thank Tom for taking on this important role and helping provide a seamless transition for our team,” said Coffey. “I have been incredibly honored to serve the Lawrence and Douglas County community over the past 30-plus years, and I look forward to seeing the continued work of this fantastic group of people.”
The City of Lawrence will begin a recruitment process for the next permanent fire chief in January 2022.
Contact: Porter Arneill, Director of Communications and Creative Resources – parneill@lawrenceks.org | 785-764-3270