Hawai‘i County Fire Commission reschedules interviews with 6 finalists for chief
The Hawai‘i County Fire Commission has rescheduled candidate interviews for a new Hawai‘i County fire chief after Hurricane Nolo forced the postponement of the original dates.
The six finalists now will be interviewed on Oct. 21 at 9 a.m. at the Hawai‘i County Liquor Commission Conference Room, located at the Hilo Lagoon Centre, 101 Aupuni Street, Unit 230.
The commission plans to select the new chief on Oct. 22.
The candidates originally were to be interviewed in September, but the approaching storm led to the closure of nearly all county services.
On Tuesday, the volunteer commission met during a special meeting in Hilo to hammer out the new dates and location to interview the finalists in the running to replace Chief Kazuo Todd, who died unexpectedly on Dec. 14 at age 45.
Commission Chair Gerald Kosaki said the postponement was beyond their control, but the public doesn’t see that: “They only see that we’re not moving forward fast enough with this.”
Kosaki said the sooner the interviews are held, the better it is for everyone, including the candidates.
“They prepared for it and the longer it takes, the more they have to re-prepare,” Kosaki said.
Fire chief candidates and their current position/status — listed alphabetically by last name — are:
- Stacy Domingo: Hawaiʻi Fire Department Emergency Communications battalion chief.
- Michael Fine: Retired Ventura County, Calif., Fire Department fire captain.
- Melanie Keolanui: Hawaiʻi Fire Department Operations battalion chief.
- Garrett Kim: Hawaiʻi Fire Department retired fire captain.
- Cole Thompson: Former Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., Fire Protection District battalion chief.
- Daniel Volpe: Hawaiʻi Fire Department temporary fire chief.
Volpe has been serving as interim chief since Dec. 18.
The salary for the fire chief is set by the Salary Commission and is currently $201,204 per year.
