Morrow resigns from Bainbridge fire board

Published 11:32 am Friday, July 29, 2016

The Bainbridge Island Fire Department is once again looking for a new fire commissioner.

Dan Morrow abruptly announced his immediate resignation from the fire department’s board of commissioners during the board’s meeting on July 14.

Morrow had served in Position 3 since his unanimous appointment to the board in May 2012. He was elected to a four-year term in November 2013.

Officials said Morrow did not give a reason for stepping down and did not submit a resignation letter. He could not be reached for comment earlier this week.

Morrow is the second Bainbridge fire commissioner to resign this year. Eileen McSherry tendered her resignation from Position 4 in late April. She was midway through a six-year term, and her seat on the five-member board was filled by the appointment of Ernst “Fritz” von Ibsch in June.

Bainbridge Island Fire Chief Hank Teran said the board of commissioners was planning to select a new commissioner at its meeting this week.

Teran said commissioners would interview the two candidates who had offered to serve on the board at the time of von Ibsch’s appointment; Bruce Alward and Bill Ruddick.

Alward is a vice president with Wood Harbinger, an infrastructure consultant firm based in Bellevue. Ruddick is a 35-year Bainbridge resident who owns a consulting company on the island and ran for a position on the fire board last November.

Teran said the board planned to interview and choose a replacement Thursday, with the new commissioner taking the oath of office that night.