Pasadena Fire Chief Reassigned to City Manager’s Office

Pasadena Fire Chief Bertral Washington has been reassigned to the City Manager’s office, according to City Manager Steve Mermell.

According to Mermell, Washington has joined the City Manager’s office on special assignment and “will be working with the City Management team and me to implement projects related to public safety including the City’s Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) program.”

WEA is a public safety system that allows customers who own compatible mobile devices to receive geographically targeted, text-like messages alerting them of imminent threats to safety in their area.

It is not known when that work will begin.

“I look forward to Chief Washington lending his expertise on these projects, the results of which are expected to enhance public safety in and around the City of Pasadena,” Mermell said.

According to Mermell, while Chief Washington is on this special assignment, Deputy Chief Bryan Frieders will serve as Acting Fire Chief.

Mermell told Pasadena Now on Wednesday that Washington is still a city employee and has received no reduction in pay.
The Fire Chief’s top salary is about $228,000 per year, according to information posted on the City’s website.

Washington clashed with the Pasadena Firefighters Association over mourning bands honoring firefighters that died battling deadly fires in 2018.

A judge later admonished the City for not retracting a petition created to garner support for Washington.

Administrative Law Judge Bernard Rohrbacher found the Pasadena Fire Dept. violated the law governing collective bargaining for public employees — the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act — by circulating the letter/petition among union members, “in a manner that tended to coerce them to sign it and to, thereby, side with management against Local 809.”

Washington replaced Chief Calvin Wells in 2014.

He came to Pasadena from the Clark County Fire Department in Nevada. Prior to serving as Clark County Fire Chief, he worked for Las Vegas Fire and Rescue moving through the ranks as a firefighter, paramedic, training officer, Captain, Battalion Chief and Assistant Chief.

Washington was selected from a pool of about 42 applicants from across the country. Several finalists were chosen by a selection panel of community members, Fire Department staff, executive leadership team representatives and fire chiefs from other jurisdictions.

At the time he was hired, then City Manager Michael Beck said Washington “provided significant leadership experience within the region and put together a leadership academy for his fire department as well as local city departments. He has a very collaborative background.”