Arizona fire chief: Forced out of job

PRESCOTT, Ariz. - The chief of the Arizona fire department that lost 19 wild land firefighters in June said he is being forced out of his job.

Prescott City Manager Craig McConnell said Chief Dan Fraijo is leaving by “mutual agreement” effective Nov. 15. Fraijo disagreed.

“Mutual? No,” Fraijo said. “There’s an agreement that when I was hired that said, at any given time, either side could give 30 days’ notice and I would leave or could leave.”

Fraijo oversaw the city’s regular department and the Granite Mountain Hotshots. Nineteen of the crew’s 20 members died June 30 in a wildfire in nearby Yarnell.

McConnell said he met with Fraijo on Thursday, and they discussed how Fraijo stepped in on an interim basis in May 2012.

McConnell added that he and Fraijo “knew the time would come when the city would be seeking a more permanent fire chief.”

Front Section, Pages 3 on 10/06/2013

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