Tom Fagan announced as next Marion fire chief

MARION — Marion announced Monday that a Kansas fire department administrator will be the city’s new fire chief.

Starting next month, Tom Fagan, 42, will oversee the city’s department of 38 career firefighters and 10 paid, on-call firefighters. His annual salary will be $142,416.

Fagan, who has 22 years of experience, is division chief of administration for the Lawrence-Douglas (Kan.) County Fire Medical Department. He holds a master’s degree in management, strategy and leadership from Michigan State University, a bachelor’s degree in human resources from Ottawa University in Ottawa, Kan., and an associate degree in fire science technology from Blue River Community College in Independence, Mo.

He has been serving as interim fire chief for his current department, which is in a community of 97,000 residents.

“We were fortunate to have a strong candidate pool interview for the position, and we are pleased to welcome Tom and his family to Marion,” City Manager Ryan Waller said. “He brings a variety of experience to this role related to strategic planning, organizational change, emergency management and the accreditation model. I have no doubt Tom will be a strong collaborator.”

Fagan’s hiring comes after former Marion Fire Chief Deb Krebill’s retirement earlier this year. When Krebill became chief in 2014, she was one of the first female fire chiefs in the state.

“I’m thrilled to join Team Marion. Our family is excited to join such a great community,” Fagan said. “Marion has such a bright future ahead.”

The Marion City Council is expected to formally approve Fagan’s employment contract at its next meeting. He is expected to start Sept. 30.

Monday’s announcement was the second big hire the city has made in the past few weeks. On Thursday night at its formal meeting, the City Council approved the employment contract for new deputy city manager Kim Downs.

Downs, the current city manager of Hiawatha, announced earlier this month she was taking the Marion position and is set to begin in early September.

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