DAVID SHEW was named the new fire administrator for Napa County, California, and will take over the position on October 30. Shew is a 32-year veteran of Cal Fire, beginning his career there as a firefighter, and spent 15 years in its Sonoma-Lake-Napa unit. Also with Cal Fire, Shew served as Napa County’s fire marshal and battalion chief. Before leaving Cal Fire in 2018, he served as staff chief for the Division of Planning and Risk Analysis in the Office of the State Fire Marshal. He is also a consultant for Napa-based Wildfire Defense Works, LLC.
RICHARD STOVER will officially be sworn in as the new chief of Palm Bay (FL) Fire Rescue (PBFR) on October 19. He had been serving as the PBFR’s chief since August 26. Stover is a 35-year fire service veteran who previously served for eight years as an assistant chief for Seminole County (FL) Fire Rescue before retiring there in April 2018. He has also served as an acting public safety director, a chief, an assistant chief, a battalion chief, a captain, a lieutenant, and a firefighter with experience in administration, operations, and instruction. In addition, Stover is a member of the IAFC and the Florida Fire Chiefs Association.
MICHAEL CAYSE will take over as the new chief of the Asheville (NC) Fire Department (AFD) on January 2, 2024. Cayse comes to Asheville by way of the Cincinnati (OH) Fire Department (CFD), where he is currently serving as its district chief of special operations. He is a 34-year fire service veteran who began his career with the CFD in 1990 as a firefighter, rising through the ranks there to hold numerous positions in fire suppression, human resources, and special operations before his promotion to district chief. Cayse succeeds previous AFD Chief Scott Burnette, who retired June 1 after a 28-year career with the department.
ZACH GRAVES was hired as the first-ever full-time chief of the Hermantown (MN) Fire Department (HFD). Graves has been a member of the HFD, previously a volunteer department, for 12 years and just recently retired from the 148th Fighter Wing of the Minnesota Air National Guard, where he served more than 26 years, finishing his career there as fire chief and chief master sergeant at the Duluth military base.
MICHAEL CARDWELL took over as the new chief and emergency preparedness director for the Urbandale (IA) Fire Department (UFD) on October 3. He had been serving as the UFD’s assistant chief since 2008. Among his many initiatives, Cardwell helped lead the planning and construction of Urbandale’s fire and safety training facility and spearheaded regional partnerships, including the Central Iowa Fire/EMS Testing Consortium and the Polk County Regional Mass Casualty Incident Plan. Cardwell has a master’s degree in public administration from Upper Iowa University and has earned the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer designation.
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Names in the News: October 1, 2023
