By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
Brent Smith has been serving as Interim Fire Chief for the City of Great
Bend since early February. Beginning next week, Smith will remove the interim
label and become the official Fire Chief. The Great Bend City Council voted 6-0
to approve the appointment Monday night.
"It wasn't expected when this all started to play out," said Smith. "I'm excited where we're at right now and where we're moving toward."
Smith was hired in July 2019 as the Deputy Chief after spending 16 years as a
captain in Sedgwick County. Born in Kingman, Smith felt communication was one
of the biggest keys in leading a successful fire department.
"We need to keep moving forward," said Smith. "We have some good things going with our culture and morale. We're making it a better place to work. We're keeping everyone's morale high."
The City of Great Bend kept the interview process internal with applications.
Smith was serving as interim fire chief since Feb. 6 when the
city council approved the resignation of Chief Luke McCormick. McCormick was
with the Great Bend Fire Department since 1996 and spent more than five years
as fire chief prior to his resignation.
RELATED STORY: No comment during Great Bend council's approval of fire chief's resignation