Gadsden Mayor Craig Ford announced that Derrick Sherrell will serve as Interim Fire Chief while the city searches for a new fire chief. Sherrell assumed into the role on Friday, October 4.
Sherrell, who was a Battalion Chief, stepped into the interim role following the departure of Wil Reed, who recently accepted the position of Etowah County 911 Executive Director.
The city’s human resources department will soon post the Gadsden Fire Chief position to begin accepting applications for consideration by the Gadsden Civil Service Board. The position will be posted for a minimum of 30 days to accept all possible qualified applications.
In the meantime, Interim Fire Chief Sherrell will manage the day-to-day operations of the department. Sherrell is a 30-year veteran of the Gadsden Fire Department with a combined nine years of prior experience as a firefighter and ambulance paramedic.
Sherrell was named Assistant Chief in 2021 (that position has since been re-titled to Battalion Chief) and previously served as the department’s drug coordinator and acting Emergency Medical Services Chief.
“We want to thank Chief Reed for his 27 years of service to the people of Gadsden,” said Ford. “I also want to thank Chief Sherell for stepping in to fill the gap while the Civil Service Board prepares to select the city’s next Fire Chief. This is a critical position overseeing a department of more than 100 line personnel, seven fire stations, a training academy, a fire prevention bureau, hazmat responses, search and rescue and more. With most of our calls being for emergency medical services, the people of Gadsden depend on our fire department and its leadership to provide excellent, highly organized, and professional services in a moment’s notice. I am looking forward to working with the men and women of our department during this transition and hope the Civil Service Board will be able to select the best possible candidate to the fire chief position in the next few months.”
