Deputy fire chief says announcement DFD Commissioner Eric Jones was out, came by surprise

FOX 2 - In 2015, then-newly appointed Detroit Fire Commissioner Eric Jones said "Nothing is going to happen overnight, but change is coming, and it’s going to be for the better."

Now after six years on the job, Jones is on his way out. He announced his departure Thursday first with members of his executive team and then the rest of the department with a letter.

"I am incredibly honored to have had the opportunity to lead the Detroit Fire Department and work together with people like yourself who chose a life of giving their all to others."

Deputy Fire Chief Dave Fornell says the news took many by surprise.

"It was a bit sudden but hey we all absorbed it. We all know what we need to do to keep this department running and that’s what we’re going to do," he said.

Mayor Mike Duggan announced a nationwide search to find Jones’ replacement.

He praised the outgoing commissioner for overhauling the department’s aging fleet, reducing ems response time from nearly 20 minutes to the national average of eight minutes, and improving the city’s insurance service office rating.

"We went from an ISO insurance class four to a two and no other department in the country has improved the department in that short period of time to jump to that insurance classification which meant better pricing on policies for the citizens and businesses of Detroit," Fornell said.

For all of his successes, blemishes marked Jones’ tenure as well -  notably on-the-job drunk driving incidents that prompted the city to launch an environmental audit of the department.

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In 2017 Jones’ Deputy Chief Robert Shinske was suspended for driving his department vehicle to a Dearborn bar at 1:30 in the morning. He was investigated for getting into a minor accident with that vehicle at his home a month later.

Sources tell FOX 2 the department is facing a big challenge in that its burning through a lot of overtime.

"The overtime presents some challenges but on the other hand we’re in the midst of Covid, so we cannot control who gets sick and we’re doing what the fire department does - we’re responding to these challenges," Fornell said. "If we have people calling in sick, we can call people in on OT and on the other hand, as I told you before, we’re not going to, not-respond. We have to go, we have to work with the citizens. We have to keep the citizens and the visitors in this city safe, and that’s what we’re going to do."

Jones' official last day is next Friday-that’s when Mayor Mike Duggan will appoint an interim commissioner. He plans to hire Jones’ replacement by mid-year.