Longboat fire chief resigns

Longboat Key Fire Rescue Chief Rich Dickerson resigned Thursday, April 8, citing family reasons.

The announcement comes a year after Dickerson accepted the job to replace the vacancy created when former Fire Chief Julius Halas took a new position as director of the Florida Division of State Fire Marshal.
Town Manager Bruce St. Denis made the announcement at the end of the commission’s Goals and Objectives workshop Thursday.

Dickerson served as Sanibel’s fire chief from 2000 to 2007 and was the shift leader, emergency-management coordinator and infections control officer for the Captiva Island Fire District before coming to Longboat Key.

Dickerson’s wife, Kim, is the former deputy chief of the Lee County Emergency Medical Services and was recently promoted to become the county’s deputy director of public safety.

Being away from his family during the week, Dickerson says, has taken a toll on him. Dickerson’s youngest daughter is a freshman in high school, and he wants to live at home full-time while she is still in high school.
Dickerson has accepted the position of assistant fire chief for the Captiva Island Fire District.

Said St. Denis: “We feel badly the chief is going, but he made a huge impact while he was here.”

St. Denis said he would be appointing an acting fire chief while he considers options available for the vacant position.

The town manager, however, said it’s not cost effective for the fire department and police department to be run by one department head.

Dickerson’s last day is Friday, April 23.

Contact Kurt Schultheis at [email protected].