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Charlie LeDuff finally sits down with a fire commissioner who doesn’t run from him. Retired LAFD Assistant Chief Donald Austin takes over in Detroit on Monday.

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Previous Detroit Fire Department coverage

Donald Austin needs to always keep what happened to him yesterday in mind once he takes over as the commissioner of the troubled Detroit Fire Department. Friday was the day the Detroit native, who retired in February as an assistant chief with the Los Angeles Fire Department, sat down with TV reporter Charlie LeDuff, the man two previous fire commissioners constantly ran from. And the fact that the former commissioners never understood how to handle LeDuff is one of the reasons Chief Austin has this new job.

What Chief Austin needs to remember is the demeanor, candor and poise he showed in the video above. Bottle it. You will need it.

A Dennis Walus photo of Detroit firefighters in action at a house fire on Tuesday. While LeDuff stays on the commissioners, Walus is out there, camera in hand, showing the daily work of Detroit firefighters. Click here for Dennis' photos.

The new commissioner will likely have a brief honeymoon with LeDuff and the rest of the press after he takes over the department on Monday. But it won't be long before LeDuff comes calling again with some internal document in his hand or video of a new scandal or serious problem. Chief Austin will do the department a world of good by handling the bad news exactly as he handled this interview, including the sense of humor he showed at the end of the clip.

And if Chief Austin really wants to minimize the impact of some future scandal he shouldn't wait until LeDuff shows up demanding to talk to the commissioner. In fact, it should be the other way around. When bad news strikes, the commissioner should be the one demanding to talk to LeDuff and other reporters, providing all of the gory details. Furthermore, if the chief really wants to tame LeDuff a bit, he should immediately dump a pile of paperwork on the reporter. Let Charlie see the entire paper trail showing what happened to the money to fix crumbling firehouses or maintain the city's ambulances. Get it all out so the problems of the past are truly that and they don't become the problems of the future for the new commissioner to constantly deal with.

I imagine that Charlie gave his cell phone number to Chief Austin yesterday. Memorize that number chief and use it often. It can be an important tool in changing the image and perception of the Detroit Fire Department.

Posted by on May 21, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Fires, Los Angeles Fire Department, News, Uncategorized, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Interim Detroit Fire Commissioner Fred Wheeler finally meets with reporter Charlie LeDuff. Sort of.

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Previous Detroit stories

Above and below are the latest two stories about the woes of the Detroit Fire Department from WJBK-TV. As usual they provide lessons on what not to do when dealing with the news media. 

The first story (above) is another Charlie LeDuff special trying to determine, once again, where the money has gone that was supposed to be used to repair the city's fire stations. LeDuff say this includes a paid for, but never installed, sprinkler system at a firehouse that burned.

Interim Commissioner Fred Wheeler, who has been the subject of a number of LeDuff's stories, agreed to meet with the reporter. But the commissioner said no cameras. Wheeler also seemed to be avoiding the cameras in the story below about a City Council hearing Wednesday that had the commissioner on the hot seat. 

Unfortunately, the fire commissioner just continues to make bad stories much worse by constantly giving the impression he is running from the press and has something to hide. The reporters, whether you like them or not, are asking legitimate questions of a public official. That's their job. Your job is to be accountable.

If you have a defensible position, defend it and provide the supporting facts. If mistakes were made, get it all out in the open and explain how you are dealing with it and making sure it doesn't happen again. In either case, don't run, don't hide.

In addition, the city may think it is real smart by charging a high processing fee to the TV station for documents requested by FOIA. Instead, Detroit should be dumping all of these documents in LeDuff's lap and finally getting this issue over and done with.

Charlie LeDuff was on the fire station repair story as a print reporter well before he took his act to TV. Isn't it obvious that just because LeDuff can't get his hands on all of the documents it is not going to stop him from doing the story?

As paperwork is leaked to Charlie bit by bit, new stories will pop up, continuing to shine a light on an issue that should now be part of the city's history and not continue to be a part of its future.

Council Turns Up the Heat on Fire Commissioner Fred Wheeler at Budget Hearing: MyFoxDETROIT.com

Posted by on May 12, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Health & Safety, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Funding & Staffing, News, Social Media, Reputation Management, News Media, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Charlie LeDuff finally catches up with Detroit’s Fire Commissioner. Fred Wheeler gives the reporter the silent treatment.

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Previous Detroit coverage

Detroit & how to deal with the Charlie LeDuff's of the world will be part of the discussion in Room 125-126 on Thursday at 1:30 PM at FDIC.

I ask this week as I asked last week, when will they learn? Charlie LeDuff isn't going away. And either are the Detroit Fire Department's image problems if this is how they deal with the bad news.

It doesn't matter that you don't like Charlie LeDuff or any other reporter. A public official refusing to talk to reporters who have questions about legitimate stories is only asking to be ambushed. That's exactly what happened to Commissioner Fred Wheeler.

A public official who then gives that reporter the silent treatment while the reporter and a photographer are chasing after him down the street isn't going to look very good on television. That is also what happened to Commissioner Wheeler.

LeDuff wants answers about another broken down ambulance on an emergency call and information on whether Commissioner Wheeler is meeting the city's residency requirements for appointed officials.

If Commissioner Wheeler and anyone else guiding how the city responds to bad news hasn't figured it out yet, Charlie LeDuff probably isn't going away. The same old tactics for dealing with LeDuff aren't working. What was Einstein's quote about insanity?

Part of turning Detroit's major problems around is winning over the hearts and minds of the public and letting them know it is no longer business as usual. Stories like this don't give you much confidence that anything is really different.

If they can't get rid of LeDuff, someone better figure out how to deal with him. Here's a suggested start: answer the man's questions honestly and openly.

Posted by on March 22, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Health & Safety, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, News, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Charlie LeDuff on the case of Detroit’s interim fire commissioner. When will they learn?

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Previous coverage of Charlie LeDuff and the Detroit Fire Department (click & scroll down)

Come see me at FDIC on March 24 in rooms 125-126 at 1:30 PM on how to handle the bad news & other media issues

Firegeezer also has some views on this topic

As regular readers know, I have written quite a few words about WJBK-TV’s Charlie LeDuff’s advocacy reporting on the Detroit Fire Department. I even gave some unsolicited advice on ways to start getting the image issues under control as new leadership apparently works to solve the many, many problems in this department (click here). I guess those in charge don’t read STATter911.com and haven’t learned anything on their own from LeDuff’s previous reports. So we are left with this latest embarrassment for the department and the city.

Did Interim Fire Commissioner Fred Wheeler really think that the issue of where he lives would escape the scrutiny of this intrepid reporter? Apparently, yes.

After LeDuff’s previous reporting resulted in the firing of Wheeler’s predecessor and his deputy for an alleged cover-up that LeDuff reported went all the way to the commissioner’s office, shouldn’t that have sent a message about ethics? Apparently, no.

Is not talking to and avoiding reporter LeDuff about this latest issue going to make LeDuff and this problem go away for Commissioner Wheeler ? If history is any guide, I don’t think so.

LeDuff has video that seems to indicate Wheeler lives in a townhouse in Ann Arbor and commutes in a city issued Crown Vic when he and other appointed city officials are supposed to live in Detroit. But the reporter has much more than that. LeDuff has Wheeler’s signed Oath of Office indicating he lives in Detroit along with voting and motor vehicle records saying otherwise. If that isn’t enough, he has an on camera interview with the person who says she who typed Wheeler’s Oath of Office form. From WJBK-TV’s website:

“I noticed manupilation,” said Val Jopes.

Jopes, the executive assistant to the past six fire commissioners, typed up that oath for Commissioner Wheeler.

“I typed it on the typewriter in my office, yes,” she said.

We asked Jopes where Wheeler lives.

“He lives in Ann Arbor,” she responded.

We then asked Jopes whether Wheeler lied on his oath.

“He does that with a nice smile,” she replied.

You may recall that Mayor Dave Bing said the final straw for the previous commissioner was that the mayor had to find out from a reporter about a stolen wallet from a citizen’s home and attempts to cover it up. Let’s hope that Commissioner Wheeler at least learned that lesson and informed Mayor Bing of the residency issue before LeDuff discovered it.

But as LeDuff reports, that may not be enough to save the commish. The issue of getting city workers, including police officers, to live in Detroit is something the mayor has made a priority. It really doesn’t look good when one of the bosses isn’t with the program and isn’t providing any explanation as to why that’s the case. So, another lesson, besides keeping the boss informed, is not to do anything that very publicly conflicts with the agenda set by your boss.

Posted by on March 17, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, News, Social Media, Reputation Management, News Media, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Does anyone really think avoiding Charlie LeDuff & not answering his questions are good tactics for the Detroit Fire Department? Apparently the new commissioner does.

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Here is the latest Charlie LeDuff story from WJBK-TV. LeDuff is the reporter who has made fire and EMS in Detroit his mission. His last major story helped end the career of Detroit Fire Commissioner James Mack and his deputy. If you followed LeDuff’s reports you would know that Commissioner Mack almost never returned LeDuff’s calls and would not make himself available to the reporter to answer questions about very serious department issues. A key part of most of LeDuff’s stories focused on his efforts to track down Mack. I would contend that tactic didn’t serve Commissioner Mack very well and is a lesson for fire chiefs, commissioners and all leaders who have to deal with bad news.

Now comes Fred Wheeler, the interim commissioner. Looking at this story, it appears Commissioner Wheeler is following a similar pattern with reporter LeDuff. Does anyone think the outcome is going to be different?

In this case the story is about an ambulance that caught fire. Much like the stolen wallet from a citizen’s home that was the closing saga in the Mack era, these things happen. They generally aren’t career enders for the person at the top. But, as we all know, little problems become big ones when you fail to deal with them or handle them properly. In the wallet case, I offered these simple rules: (Don’t you just love it when Dave quotes himself? What an ego that guy has.)

When the hint of a crime occurs in your department, take the appropriate action. If there has already been a cover-up, don’t compound it. And again, take appropriate action. Also, make sure you tell your boss about it. Then go put it out to the news media yourself with as much information as possible to get this story behind you. Don’t wait for Charlie LeDuff to knock on your door or call your boss. 

As for the case of the burning ambulance, did anyone in the Detroit Fire Department really think Charlie LeDuff wasn’t going to find out about this incident? Did anyone think that LeDuff would forget that Wheeler had been second deputy commissioner of facilities and maintenance? Do you think, at this point, there is any Detroit Fire Department secret that Charlie LeDuff doesn’t know or can’t find out or any document he can’t obtain? I think we know the answer to these questions.

It doesn’t matter if you like Charlie LeDuff or his style of reporting. He is a force to be dealt with and the way the leadership of the Detroit Fire Department has dealt with him isn’t working. Every little brush fire has and will become a conflagration if the tactics don’t change.

When bad news happens there is only one thing that really works, whether you are dealing with Charlie LeDuff or any other reporter. Get the information out … all of it. Get it right. Get it behind you. If you’re really smart, when you know there is a problem, break the news yourself.

Don’t spin. Don’t run. Don’t hide. Don’t blame the news media. These things will rarely work for you.

Ultimately it’s about the confidence the public has in your operation. When the citizens contstantly see the leaders of a fire department running from the reporter and his camera and not providing clear answers, it can’t be giving them a lot of faith in the operation. Often what makes a Charlie LeDuff story so compelling are the ambush interviews and other attempts to get those in charge to talk. Hasn’t anyone figured out trying to avoid the guy is akin to throwing gasoline on that brush fire?

If it was my job to reform the Detroit Fire Department, one of the first people I would call is Charlie LeDuff. I’d find out what he wants to know and open the books for him. Give Charlie the answers. Get all the bad news behind you. I see that as the only way to move forward. And as you move forward and there are bumps in the road, like stolen wallets and burning ambulances, give Charlie and the rest of the reporters a jingle. Let the reporters and the public know it happened and how you are dealing with it.

This doesn’t mean you have to kiss Charlie’s behind. If his story is wrong, stand up and let him and the rest of the world know about it. But make sure you are fighting him with real facts and not your ego.

That would be part of my plan. I’m sure there are better ones. But I’m equally as sure that continuing with the same media plan will just provide the same unpleasant results and add more chapters to the soap opera that appears almost nightly on Detroit’s Channel 2.

Posted by on January 16, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Funding & Staffing, News, Social Media, Reputation Management, News Media, Uncategorized, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Lessons from Detroit: The firing of Commissioner James Mack & his deputy are about the basics. Don’t let this happen to you. Do you have your own version of the ‘Dave Statter test’?

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STATter911.com previous coverage of the Detroit Fire Department

Detroit Mayor Dave Bing made it pretty clear today that, while a lot was happening with Detroit fire and EMS services that left him unhappy, the most recent story was the final straw. It was another one by WJBK-TV reporter Charlie LeDuff. LeDuff and his advocacy, in your face style of journalism, clearly has had influence in Detroit. This story was about a wallet apparently taken during a CO alarm run at a citizen’s home that ended up in the quarters of Engine 40 and how the incident was handled by the department.

Reporter LeDuff used internal documents and information from sources to indicate there was a cover-up about the stolen wallet that extended all of the way to the office of Commissioner James Mack. Mayor Bing apparently found some credence to the TV news report.  A day after the story aired the mayor requested and received the resignations of Mack and Deputy Fire Commissioner Seth Doyle.

Many of us were reminded of an important truth in life from the Watergate conspiracy of the 1970s. It is worth repeating for those who have forgotten or are too young and don’t know their history: The cover-up is worse than the crime.

Reading the reports written at various levels in this specific case you could come away with the impression there were members of Engine 40 sincere about making this family whole. They collected $150 to cover the cash and driver’s permit taken from the wallet. But you could also be left with a more sinister view of the reports.

Just two days ago I learned from an old friend who is a veteran fire officer in the Washington area that when he handled situations like this or wrote reports he always applied the “Dave Statter test”. He would ask himself, “How would this look if Statter got a hold of it and put it on Channel 9 News?”.

While I was flattered learning this after all these years, I know many other smart leaders have done similar things, but without using my name. I work for someone who applies the “Washington Post” test. In Detroit, if anyone was on the ball about this they would have used the “Charlie LeDuff test”. How would these reports look if LeDuff got them?

They found out that answer the hard way.

Reading through the reports the first thing that sticks out to me is that it is likely a crime was committed. Where did the fire department engage the police in this process? Also, a less charitable review of the reports could leave the perception for some that the cash given to the family was hush money.

On top of giving, at the very least, the impression of a cover-up, and then failing to apply the “Charlie LeDuff test”, Mayor Bing pointed out another major mistake by Commissioner Mack: He failed to keep his boss informed.

If you are a fire commissioner, chief or leader of any organization, you have stakeholders. Those stakeholders, especially your boss, should not first learn of bad news from a reporter or watch it on TV. If Commissioner Mack did not know prior to yesterday this should be SOP, he and the rest of Detroit know it now.

Let’s face it, things like a firefighter stealing a wallet happen in the fire service and everywhere else in life. If that was all this story was, Detroit most likely would not be looking for a new fire commissioner. But by compounding the original crime with people at every level of the Detroit Fire Department apparently failing to take appropriate action and then not telling the big boss, it becomes a very different type of story.

Here’s the advice from the person the “Dave Statter test” was named for. When the hint of a crime occurs in your department, take the appropriate action. If there has already been a cover-up, don’t compound it. And again, take appropriate action. Also, make sure you tell your boss about it. Then go put it out to the news media yourself with as much information as possible to get this story behind you. Don’t wait for Charlie LeDuff to knock on your door or call your boss.

This way the citizens will be better served and you will have a getter chance of getting a paycheck every two weeks.

Posted by on January 7, 2011 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Customer Service, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Funding & Staffing, News, Police, Social Media, Reputation Management, News Media, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

6 Detroit firefighters hurt when storefront brick walls collapse. Brother rescues brother at scene of rekindle.

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The latest from Firefighter Close Calls/ The Secret List

WDIV-TV raw video from chopper

Report from WDIV-TV

Cell phone video from scene

As soon as we got back into cell phone/Internet from one of our stops in California we learn from many of regular readers of this morning’s collapse in Detroit that left 6 firefighters injured. 

The latest from WDIV-TV on the injured has some grim news from the Detroit Fire Department:

Detroit Fire Commissioner James Mack said three were in critical condition and three were in fair condition, with one firefighter having been paralyzed from the waist down and another needing to be intubated.

Picture on left from Bill Eisner, The Detroit News. On the right is the before picture from Google Maps StreetView. Click the image to tour the neighborhood.

Here is the latest on those injured from The Detroit News:

• Lt. Gerald Rutkowski, 46, fair condition at St. John, headed to Troy Beaumont Hospital; 23 years with department

• Shane Raxter, 32, fair condition at St. John; 9 years with department.

• Brian Baulch, 31, critical at St. John, headed to Detroit Receiving; 9 years with department.

• Jeron Whitehorn, 30, treated at St. John and released; 8 years with department.

• Eric Jurmo, 31, critical at Detroit Receiving; 11 years with department.

• Brendan Milewski, 31, critical at Detroit Receiving; 11 years with department.

Excerpts from Detroit Free Press article by Matt Helms,  Peggy Walsh-Sarnecki, Zlati Meyer:

When a wall collapsed on Detroit firefighter Gerald (Razzy) Rutkowski as he fought a blaze on the city’s east side this morning, his older brother Tom was one of the people who dug him out from under the pile of bricks.

He then rode with him in the Detroit Fire Department squad car that raced him to St. John Hospital for treatment, as he bled profusely from his head.

Gerald Rutkowski, 46, is one of six firefighters seriously injured this morning, while battling a fire this morning that has devastated a retail building on East Jefferson on Detroit’s east side across from the Golightly Career and Technical School near Drexel

“I thought he was done,” Tom Rutkowski, 53, said, adding that his kid brother, a 26-year veteran of the DFD, apparently had broken his hip, pelvis and left foot.

Four firefighters are at St. John Hospital — three in critical but stable condition and one in intensive care – according to Jeffrey Pegg, a firefighter with Ladder 28 on the city’s west side and secretary of the Detroit Firefighters Association Local 344. Another two firefighters being treated at Detroit Receiving Hospital are “pretty seriously injured,” he said.

The firefighters were initially at the site on Jefferson near Drexel around 5:30 a.m., but left shortly before 7 a.m., believing they’d extinguished the blaze, Pegg said. However, they returned to the retail building around 7 a.m., because the fire had rekindled.

Squad 2’s Lt. Robert Tucker, who said the injured firefighters had “a long road ahead of them,” explained that the decision to leave the scene after the first blaze didn’t indicate a miscalculation. They’d been under the impression that the fire was out and something else happened to restart the fire

A brick façade collapsed on the firefighters around 7:20 a.m., Pegg said.

After the blaze started in the commercial strip, firefighters worked to prevent it from spreading to the vacant apartment building next door, according to Tom Rutkowski.

Several of them were pulling boards off the windows of the building, which may have been undergoing renovation, and then suddenly, several stories worth of exterior bricks rained down on the six firefighters.

Posted by on August 13, 2010 • Filed under: Administration & Leadership, Command & Leadership, Detroit Fire Department, EMS Topics, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, Firefighter Safety & Health, Firefighting Operations, Fires, Major Incidents, Mass Casualty Incident, News, Videos • Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Detroit firefighter accused of creating a false incident report to cover for off-duty vehicle crash. Police charge insurance fraud.

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Article by Tammy Stables Battaglia at freep.com:

The Detroit Fire Department has suspended a 10-year veteran firefighter, who’s expected to be charged Friday with creating a false fire department report after leaving the scene of a hit-and-run accident.

Jonathan Britt, 30, of Detroit was put on leave without pay last week when the department learned a warrant had been signed Jan. 6, Fire Commissioner James Mack said today.

“Those are some serious charges to be leveled against someone with the fire department,” Mack said today. “We take those charges very seriously. When the indictment came out and we were notified, we placed him on that status.”

Britt could not be reached for comment today.

According to a warrant, Britt is accused of hitting an unoccupied car parked at Conant and East McNichols on May 2, 2009, then creating a false Detroit Fire Department report claiming he was in an accident elsewhere, to submit to his insurance company.

Britt is also accused of filing a false report with the Detroit Police Department, claiming he was in an accident at Linwood and Hazelwood that required firefighters from Engine 21 to respond, according to the warrant.

That engine company was deactivated – no firefighters were working that firehouse – the day of the accident, according to the fire department.

The warrant charges Britt with uttering and publishing, punishable by up to 14 years in jail; insurance fraud, punishable by 4 years in jail and up to $50,000 in fines; identity theft, punishable by up to 5 years in jail and $25,000 in fines; and false pretenses more than $1,000 but less that $20,000, punishable by up to 5 years in prison and $10,000 in fines.

Posted by on January 14, 2010 • Filed under: Courts, fire, Fire Rescue Topics, News, Police • Tagged: , , , , ,