Houston Fire Chief Sam Peña Responds to HPFFA

HOUSTON - Fire Chief Sam Peña's Statement:
"I took an oath to faithfully execute the duties of this office. I love this profession and consider it an honor to lead the Houston Fire Department and the hardworking men and women who have dedicated themselves to the safety of our community.

Since day one of my appointment, I have extended the union an open door policy and access in hopes of working together to address the challenges of operating a large department.

The continued strategy to discount and discredit the positive work this administration has done is divisive and unnecessary. I know that at the core of their discontent is the union’s inability to negotiate a contract for its members.

Our firefighters and the community deserve to have the best equipment and materials we can afford and I stand by our work and the significant progress we’ve made in the last two years in addressing the state of the fleet, firefighter cancer prevention initiatives, and flood response equipment and training.



My focus will remain on working to resolve the challenges we face. The City of Houston deserves nothing less than a professional Fire Department ready to preserve the public safety and care for the most vulnerable in our community," Samuel Peña, Fire Chief - City of Houston.