Columbia MO Fire Chief Randy White Planning to Retire Firefighters

Pictures of early American military aircraft hang in the office of Fire Chief Randy White, symbolizing some of the reasons behind his initial decision to dedicate 21-years of his life to serving the people of Columbia.

"I wanted to fly in the military and life just kept getting in the way," White said. "But wearing a uniform, helping people, doing those kind of things, it fell in line that I could stay here in my community and still have that same experience."

White will retire this October after rising through the ranks of the department to become chief in February of 2015. He said the reasons for his departure were something he initially wanted to keep to himself, but on Tuesday offered that after 21 years of emergency situations at all hours dictating every aspect of his life, it was time for the 57-year-old fireman to move on.

"It doesn't matter whether it means getting woke up three or four times a night, even as chief every time a crew goes out on a fire I get a text, " White said. "You are always on call, you are always responsible and not only for yourself, but for everybody here and all the citizens of Columbia. After a while it just got to a point where I had picked up the ball and ran as far as I could with it. It's time to let someone with fresh legs have it and run forward."

Looking back at his career, White saw many highs and lows. Perhaps the darkest time during his service, he said, was the death in February 2014 of Lt. Bruce Britt, who was helping evacuate students when a second-story walkway collapsed at a University of Missouri-owned apartment complex.

"That day, that morning, the days after that, just overall at the department and for me personally were very difficult," White, who was deputy chief at the time, said. "The whole process of where do we go from here now we've had a death. How much does the department need to know, how fast, because we haven't made contact with the next of kin.

"We had all that and things were complicated. It took a long time and there was a whole lot of grief in our folks. And our folks are very type A, when faced with a problem they can't do anything about, it was very difficult."

Good days in the department abounded as well. White said two times in his career stand out, the day he graduated and received his badge was one of his finest moments, he said, as well as being promoted to lead the agency, considering his somewhat alternative path to a life in fire service. He actually went to school for business administration and worked for an insurance company before a friend led him to firefighting at the age of 36.

"Obviously through the years I never intended to be chief, that was never my goal," White said. "I prepared for moving up and always doing the best I can and then fate and everything else kind of came together. And one of the highlights of my career was walking in this office and realizing it's my department to run."

Another highlight came when the department in March was awarded accreditation by the Commission on Fire Accreditation International. A lengthy and rigorous process, Columbia firefighters worked for many years to achieve the coveted status, given to only 258 departments in the world.

"It's one thing for me to go to the council or the citizens and say we need this or the department needs to build new stations, but how do you know you're a good department and doing what you're supposed to be doing," White said. "Where is that third-party verification. We have the citizen surveys and they are always very happy but there is that desire to be graded by your peers.

"It's important to be able to say internally as a fire department this is what we do, this is how well we do it and somebody else has come in and verified it."

White's work toward the accreditation, the many mapping projects undertaken that ultimately led to a safer city, was one of many reasons Assistant Chief Brad Fraizer said he will be missed upon his departure in October.

"Chief White has been an outstanding leader for the Columbia Fire Department," Fraizer said. "He was instrumental in moving the department forward, specifically with accreditation, among many other things and he will be missed."

Interim City manager John Glascock echoed those sentiments in a city press release announcing White's retirement, saying he ensured the department continually improved and sought opportunities for growth. Columbia Professional Firefighters IAFF Local 1055 also issued a statement Tuesday praising the chief for his leadership.

"Chief White has been an exceptional leader to the men and women of the Columbia Professional Firefighters IAFF Local 1055," secretary-treasurer Zachary Privette said. "Under Chief's leadership, our department has taken significant steps in a positive direction. We wish Chief White the best in his future endeavors, and look forward to enjoying a similar excellent working relationship with our next fire chief."

Until a new chief is named, Deputy Chief Kyle Fansler will fill the role of acting fire chief after White retires. White said for whomever is named his successor, two things that have presented a challenge for years will continue to press the new administration, a lack of personnel and a lack of stations in the state's fastest growing large city.

"I think I will express to the new chief to take the ball and move forward," White said. "You have to keep progressing as a fire department to keep up with the city."

After two decades, White said he will miss the department. Not so much his many administrative tasks, he said, as being on the scene and helping the people in his role as a firefighter, a path his is proud to have traveled.

"I already do," White said. "I already miss running calls, helping people, riding on the trucks with folks, doing all those things. I already miss all that. That's not what I do now. What I do now is paperwork and meetings and talk to county.

"Will I miss this, the chief part of it? Probably not much," he laughed.

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