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WRC-TV/NBC4 reporter Tom Sherwood says a destruction of property investigation was started after it was discovered that someone drew a mustache on the official photograph of DC Fire & EMS Department Chief Kenneth Ellerbe at the quarters of Engine 10, Truck 13. The picture was left hanging upside down in the firehouse.:
A deputy chief and a lieutenant dressed down the company, demanding respect for the chief and threatening criminal charges.
“You don’t want to be in here in this agency or under the direction of the fire chief, there’s nothing holding you back,” an official can be heard saying on a recording obtained by News4. “But as long as he’s the fire chief, we all have to respect him.”
I heard about it, but it’s probably just something that’s blown out of proportion,” Ellerbe said. “I talked to our internal affairs, told them don’t even worry about it.”
“I guess whether they like me or not I’ll be the chief, but I can’t worry about that stuff,” he added. “We have a lot of serious stuff to take care of, to think about, and putting mustaches on pictures is not one of those high priority items.”
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Also on STATter911 …
- UPDATE: DC firefighters receive official warning about protests at Mayor’s speech. Union president cites first amendment. Spokesman tells City Paper directive did not come from the chief, but tells Post it would be frowned upon. – February 6, 2012
- DC Chief Kenneth Ellerbe on why safer cotton shirts for firefighters are sitting in warehouse: ‘Sometimes there’s trickery in terms of one administration to another’. – March 9, 2012
- DC fire chief faced sexual harassment claim in Sarasota County, FL. Washington Times questions why Kenneth Ellerbe wasn’t fully vetted by Mayor Vincent Gray. – March 6, 2012
- Chief Kenneth Ellerbe responds: Live interview this morning discussing sexual harassment claims when chief was in Florida. – March 8, 2012
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One cannot demand respect, it has to be earned!
I’ll put money on it that this went from anbinvestigation to no big deal because FINALLY, someone remembered their phone has a voice recorder…”you’ll be at the mercy of the fire chief”…hasn’t this already been established as the rule of thumb as it pertains to the OBVIOUS disparity in discipline….One more thing….you can’t demand respect…YOU HAVE TO EARN IT!!!!!
Remember DCFEMS employees..if you didn’t record it it didn’t happen….always come to work refreshed and with a fully charged battery in your phone…
I say we all grow staches to show our support to the chief
I second that motion!
Certainly had enough time to worry about the citizen dropping off a case of beer at Engine 9…So much he made a personal appearance there, then demoted a BFC and transferred another over the handling of it….its funny how the President of the US dropped a case of beer off at a firehouse in Norfolk, Va recently and I never read or heard about the fire chief there going stir crazy….Well….maybe their chief didn’t have an agenda because of his previous successor…
Rule by force and fear? Sounds like a stellar plan Ellerbe! Ask Hitler, Stallin, Mussolini, Hussein, Gaddafi how that worked out for them. Learn from the past or you are destined to repeat it.
sight unseen i would have thought that they did a hitler stache on the picture…wait hitler,stallin, hussein and gaddafi all had a mustache didnt they?
When i was a probie i was told “you respect the rank,the person in the uniform has to earn it”
Where is the Watchdesk when you need it?
Amen to that. I miss the watchdesk
Please! Sombody please…photo shop Rube’s mustache on Ellerbe’s picture and post it!
And for something that directly involves the Fire Chief, where MPD gets involved, MPD dusts for prints, MPD makes a report and is conducting an investigation, you cannot believe he for a second he didn’t know anything, wasn’t alerted when it occurred and became directly involved in telling the DFC to go to that firehouse and let them know a thing or two…cmon….
Arrogant prick puts his photo up in every DCFD facility, he deserves to be mocked.
Destruction of property?
Police report?
Finger prints?
Seriously?
Must be Ellerbe is the head ringmaster, because it sounds like the administration is a 3 ring circus.
Glad the guys are able to go about there work without being disturbed –to much–by these idiots.
Soooo? Am I allowed to draw a mustache on Ellerbe next tour?
All the criticism will be thrown the Fire Chiefs’ way. Drawing on pictures…Really! This department has evolved into nothing but an adult day care. And if you think any other Fire Chief didn’t use force and fear to run this department that clearly shows you haven’t been here long. How hard is it to do what you’re paid to do and then go the hell home.
Oh no shultz didnt use favoritism and intimidation to run this department nah he couldnt have done that.How soon others have forgot.Cant believe some of you think the department is at an all time low.According to whom?.It seems the omes who are complaining are members who benefitted from that last regime.Rubin couldnt manage a lemonade stand.This department was out of control like the economy prior to the new administration.Is the depart perfect no,but its being managed better than the previous chiefs.So stop all your crying and do your job,that includes following sog’s sop’s and the orderbook.
Wahington D.C. has been begging for statehood for more than a decade. But it’s stunts like this, and people in D.C. government like Ellerbe and the Mayor, that make it clear that the goverment of the nationa’s capital is not ready for statehood. And, might I add, as a citizen of Maryland, we don’t want them either. I’m old enough to remember a time when the WashDC FD was one of the best in the country. Sadly, that’s been many years ago.
Uhhh, waheid, not sure if you realize this, but I would much rather DC be a state than a district. Because that would mean the residents would be responsible for the state instead of all us in the 50 states paying for this BS.
when i was a probie i was told you respect the rank, the person in the uniform has to earn your respect
NOW-was the mustache a hitler one?
The person definitely has to earn the respect of his men, NEVER, can it be demanded.
Let’s all go to the novelty shop, get some glue on staches, take our picture then hang it upside down in an appropriate place.
Surely your not a retired chief because only a pure unprofessional would make a statement like that.So please dont insult yourself by using a screen name like that.If this is shultz or rubin I dont expect any better.
@Inside looking in…..How hard is it to treat people like you told everyone you would…Fair and Transparent, where EVERYONE is on a level playing field…..I don’t have to have a degree in turf management to know the field is lopsided….
How hard is it for GROWN Men and Women of this Department to ACT like Grown Men and Women?! You are here to WORK! Not make Play Games and Finger Paint! Some of you need to F’n grow up and learn that this is a JOB and not a Frat House! I don’t like everything that this Chief or his Admin is doing either but this is where I work and this JOB is what pays my bills and put food on My Family’s table! I’m not here for the Chief and neither are any of you, your here for the Citizens you serve and you get paid nicely to do it so you can provide a comfortable living for your Family! Come to work, Do your JOB and go Home! fForget everything else!
Finally. No BS. Just straight forward logic. It’s too bad that the rest of the day care you work at can’t get that through their heads. If there weren’t any squeaky wheels at DCFD (or DCFEMS, for sake of arguement), Adolph Ellerbe wouldn’t need to grease anything. Simple concept.
Holy Crap! This is freaking amazing. Why in the hell would you send admin to a company? I would not have sat there without the union present and a tape recorder sitting out in the open. This guy is freaking insane!
I like my stache!!!
http://www.orble.com/userimages/user4810_1173922909.jpg
well you can take a transfer to while you wear your stache
This is always my favorite part of the comment section. When an LRB spy comes out of the woodwork to remind you “just to do yo job.” Which is pretty entertaining to hear, from guys and gals who are pretty notorious throughout their careers for not “just doing their jobs.” Most of us do our jobs pretty damn well. But let’s not for a second loose sight of what this is all really about. The devide and conquer tactic has been pretty effective around here. Which is sad, because we let it happen. The snitches, b$&@$es and kook-aid drinkers span across every racial, gender, etc gap in the dept. And when it’s all said and done, they just make my job easier. If you like this smug, arrogant, egotistical, sociopath, then I don’t like you… That simple. Those of us who didn’t “grow up in the city,” who come to work and bust our asses for the citizens every day, and are made to feel as though we’re somehow not worthy to be here, know this crap just isn’t right. To merely point out blatant 911 abuse, in a currently broken down system holds no Merritt as to the level of our dedication to serve. And as far as a little horseplay around the firehouse, if you can’t have a little fun doing America’s 2nd most stressful job (second only to a COMBAT SOLDIER) in one of the busiest systems in the country, then you can have this job. Once again, it is a mystery to me to hear guys who are notorious for breaking rules and ducking ropes to now decide they are going to be in compliance to hopefully get thrown a couple crumbs from LRB’s table. But hey, we’re not going anywhere.
See now thats where your wrong! I’m not an LRB spy and would never stoop that low for no one. Yes, I have done some things in my career that have lead to disciplin for them and after 20+ years on this JOB I have seen some come and seen some go. I have tried to share common sence knowledge to people on this JOB so that they can enjoy a nice retirement when it’s time, but you can only lead a horse to the water. I guess when people start to miss money from their checks then they’ll understand how to just treat this JOB as a JOB. Come in here, earn your check and go home safely to enjoy your off time with your Family. Hey if leaving is what you want to do then go, but guess what? Then he wins! “F” that, I’m not going anywhere I want to be! Like I said before I’m not here for the Chief, I’m here for the citizens, My Family and the Safety of my fellow co-workers. But if you think “horseplay” is the answer to not be stressfull, then your sadley mistaken budd! I relieve my stress (when I feel some coming on) by staying home and vacationing and enjoying time with my Family NOT thinking about NOTHING at work! Try it sometimes it really works. then maybe you can keep doing your job well like you said, instead of playing games around the firehouse! F’n Kids! Smh!
Oh yeah, make sure you have on your proper uniform to! Don’t want you to be playing in the station out of uniform. Just one more thing you going to say they F’in with you about.
Your an ass sit back and kiss the losers ass. You should go and retire then you can be with ur family all the time. I don’t even work in Dcfd But I can tell ur areal go getter on the fairground you chicken sh..
That’s why your a–hole comment just rolled off my back, because you don’t know who I am I will be nice and let you know that my Co-workers think different about what type of Fireman I am (which is more of a Fireman you would ever be!) And straight forward person I am. So you my son just sit back and keep reading about The Great DCFD and keep dreaming about wanting to play with the Big Boys.
Except when can’t go home because the hold over for 12 hours
Think about how stupid LRB looks about now!
“You little uneducated blue collar workers think you can make fun of me? I’ll fix you. Go to it MPD! Use all the high tech gadgetry at your disposal to track down the person responsible for such a vital crime. I’ll get my revenge and when I do…what???… Someone recorded the tongue lashing??? There’s a reporter here with a microphone wanting to talk to me about it??? Nah dude…this ain’t no big deal. We got biiger fish to fry in this here agency. I can’t afford to look like the idiot I am. Don’t want folks to see me for who I really am. Get out of my office.”
That’s our fearless leader! The trickery never ends!
I wonder If Engine 29 Truck 5 have a picture of the Montgomery County Executive, and it’s fire chief.
First of all you all need to stop acting like your some great firemen because your against the chief. This isnt a volunteer fire house and if you want to play games go back to the tick house.Grown adult I’m with you on this issue.So if you jave nothing more to do than to mess with pictures on a wall,than maybe you should be painting it.Thats what I would do,have the members to paint the wall since they dont like whats on it.You A@@holes just dont get it.You are making it harder for the real dedicated members on the job by your stupid games and blatant direspect.There are alot of dedicated members on this job who believe in what the chief s doing.So stop beating your chest like you think your the sh@T.I can guarantee you this for all of you who think your like that and highly respected.There are those who think you arent sh@t believe that.So stop beating your chest P.O.S.’s
How is it that this fire chief has been the most disrespected chief in modern times.Is it because no other chief has addressed the inequalties and vast internal probkems of the past.It seems to me that the dcfd is filled with a bunch of spoiled very well paid cry babies that want their way.I hear people keep saying he has to earn his respect.Well I think anyone who has come up thru the ranks has earned the right to lead whether you agree or not.Just because you got a few guys in the peanut galley telling you that your great dont make it so.So please stop making comments like your such a firemen and anyone who disagres with you is inferior.There are a lot of members who dislike the fire chief who aint and never going to be sh@t.Your shifty and pointless rants dont carry no weight except with your little minions.The chief being here has only exposed an insidious and ugly problem with this department.Brotherhood, there isnt no brother on this job since when.The citizens saw that when several members turned their backs on the fire chief.If you have’nt noticed the members that turned their backs were 97-100% white.That with in itself should tell you the climate of the job. I do believe there are some members that are not from here who are dedicated to this job and ALL THAT IT STANDS FOR.I know the vast majority of you on here truly believe there was nothing wrong with the department from the last regime.Change is inevitable so get use to it the old ways of doing business is over. You dont like doing your job fully,that means EMS calls,public service and fire to name a few just find another job.Maybe if the chief would layoff a few hundred that would get your attention.Chief Ellerbe keep pressing on and continue to do the great job you are providing for the department and the city.Dont worry about these a@@holes on here they just want it like it was when shultz and rubin were here.
You sir are a racist. its just that simple.
This chief has said multiple times he is here for the mayor and not the men. If thats the case he should come to work in a suit and not the class A this department provides.
I do not like this chief because he wants to cut some of my coworkers. Are all of them the best workers, no, but they are my brothers and sisters. Its just that simple.
The one thing you can’t deny is he has told anyone who would listen that if your not from here you don’t care and he doesn’t want you. This was also supported by the mayor, just listen to his state of the district speech.
in the end is this chief worse than others? YES. He does not support the men he is only here for the mayor. Those are his words.
Anyone who would like to discuss this leave a name and number and I would be glad to debate this with in private.