PORT TOWNSEND — East Jefferson Fire Rescue commissioners are in negotiation with a candidate for the position of fire chief of the largest fire department in Jefferson County, said Rich Stapf Jr., chairman of the three elected commissioners.
Stapf said the board had agreed not to release the name of the individual before hiring.
The district — which serves Port Townsend, Cape George, Chimacum, Irondale, Kala Point, Marrowstone Island and Port Hadlock — has been without a permanent chief since former Chief Mike Mingee left in January to become the Carpinteria-Summerland Fire Protection District chief in Santa Barbara County, Calif.
The four finalists were introduced to the public Tuesday night at Fire Station 1-5 on Critter Lane south of Port Townsend.
The candidates are:
• Merlin Halverson, fire chief/CEO with Snohomish County Fire District, a professional firefighter for 36 years and fire chief since 1998.
• Andrew Hail, deputy chief of Redmond Fire Department, where he has worked since 1979.
• Paul Stewart, division chief of Central Kitsap Fire and Rescue, where he has worked since 1980.
• Charles “Chuck” Tandy, fire chief of Washington City, Utah, Department of Public Safety since June 2006.
