Fire Chief Murray Gordon drank a glass of cabernet at a restaurant before the New Year’s Eve fire along W. Casino Road, but he was not intoxicated, according to an outside investigation paid for by the city.
The longtime chief, 61, admitted that his actions that night may have shown “poor judgment” and “may not have been prudent,” according to the report. No disciplinary action is planned but the union says the controversy highlights the need for rules that apply to everyone, regardless of rank.
The fire at the Bluffs apartments was one of the biggest blazes in Everett in years. The chief arrived as his crews were already fighting the fire, and may have been anxious about how to jump in and help, the investigation found.
Gordon has been with the department nearly 40 years and has been fire chief since 2001.
He was quoted in a city news release on Monday as saying he was looking forward to putting questions about his conduct that night behind him.
The city on Monday released the 28-page report compiled by the Summit Law Group of Seattle. The investigation cost $13,000. It was ordered after at least three Everett firefighters complained about the chief’s behavior at the fire scene.
In a prepared statement, Mayor Ray Stephanson said he was “pleased that the investigation has exonerated Chief Gordon.”
The investigator determined there was “no credible evidence” that the chief was intoxicated or impaired. Gordon had ordered a bottle of wine to share with dinner companions. He had one glass and had poured a second glass when he was called to the fire about 7 p.m. Someone else at the table ended up drinking his second glass, witnesses reported.