WASHINGTON — Former Newport Beach (California) Division Chief Paul Matheis has been sworn in as the newest U.S. fire administrator.
The Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI) made the announcement in its latest ‘Washington Watch’ update of legislative and policy news affecting the nation’s fire service.
While there has been no formal announcement from the U.S. Fire Administration, presumably due to the Department of Homeland Security shutdown, Matheis’ name appears on the Department of Homeland Security’s website in a listing of senior leaders in the department.
Matheis, a 30-year veteran of the Newport Beach Fire Department, started as a firefighter in 1980. Prior to that, he was a wildland firefighter with the California Division of Forestry, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Matheis also served as president of the Training Officers Section in the California Fire Chiefs Association and is an adjunct instructor at the National Fire Academy.
What should be the No. 1 priority for the new U.S. fire administrator?
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