THE CITY OF ALAMEDA, CALIFORNIA, DOES NOT PERMIT department heads to take home their city vehicles. So they have made an agreement with Fire Chief David Kapler to provide for his need to be on call at all hours. Chief Kapler has been granted a $250 a month vehicle allowance and they outfitted his pickup truck with a radio, a siren, and emergency lights. All set for those late-night fire calls now? Not quite…. Chief Kapler needs gasoline. And if he is out in his BMW sports convertible coupe, he needs gas in that too.
It seems that the chief has read between the lines of his “employment agreement” with the city and has expanded his benefits to include filling up the gas tanks of both of his personal vehicles without first checking with his superiors. Now some “interested parties” have dropped a dime on the chief and are letting word out about his liberal interpretation of the rules. Michele Ellson, writing in The Island newspaper tells:
Two witnesses told The Island that on Saturday afternoon, they saw Kapler and a female companion pull into Fire Station One in a blue BMW and fill the tank. They say instead of writing in the number of the vehicle being fueled — as firefighters typically do — he wrote down his radio identifier. They say Kapler pumped 11 gallons of gas.
photo via The Island
A third witness, who also declined to be named for fear of jeopardizing their employment, said they have seen Kapler fill up a BMW at Fire Station Four about four to five times. The witness says they also saw Kapler fill up an all-terain vehicle at Fire Station One on one occasion. These incidents happened since he became Alameda’s fire chief in October 2007, the witness said.
The third witness went on to say that they occasionally saw Kapler fill up the BMW at a fire station pump at 11 or 11:30 at night, which they thought was “strange.” They said Kapler failed to sign the log indicating that he filled up his tank on one occasion.
“I’m always on duty,” (Kapler) said. “So whatever vehicle I’m in, I’m available to respond.”
After being shown the photos, Mayor Beverly Johnson says that she has “a high level of concern.” Apparently she’s not the only one. Domenick Weaver, the firefighters’ union local president said, “I am absolutely shocked and disappointed by what I’ve been shown.” (referring to the photos of Kapler), ”I have never seen or heard of anyone using the city fuel for their own activities. This certainly warrants an investigation to ensure that the community is not being taken advantage of, as well as appropriate discipline by the city manager.”
It’s beginning to sound like there is some friction between the chief and his firefighters. Read the entire article HERE.
Also on FireGeezer…
- Countermanding the Fear Mongerers in Alameda – April 11, 2011
- “Not Worth the Money They’re Being Paid” – June 22, 2011
