Mark Cannon appointed interim Joplin fire chief

(From the City of Joplin)

Joplin City Manager Nick Edwards announces his appointment of Mark Cannon as the Interim Fire Chief. The current Fire Chief Jim Furgerson will retire from the City of Joplin on June 4, 2021. Cannon will begin serving in the Interim position on June 4, 2021.

Cannon has been with the Joplin Fire Department for six years. He joined the City as the Chief of Training, after serving 20 years with the fire department in Kansas City, Mo.

 

“Chief Cannon is a respected leader in the Fire Department and has a range of qualifications and experience well suited to help lead the Fire Department in an interim role. I want to thank Chief Cannon for serving as an interim Fire Chief. As an interim Chief, this means he will often need to wear “two hats” with one being Interim Fire Chief and the other being his current role as the Fire Training/Special Operations Chief. Mark has a passion for the fire department and will serve in the dual roles without a drop off in service.,” said Edwards. “He brings strong skills to help manage day to day operations and will be an asset to the department as we continue working on several ongoing projects in the department.”

Currently, the Fire Department is conducting a resource assessment and is in the initial stages of adding a seventh station that was approved by voters in 2016 with the Public Safety Sales Tax.

Furgerson will work with Interim Chief Cannon to ensure continuity within the department until a permanent fire chief is hired. Edwards noted that a search process will begin soon to find the permanent replacement and next Fire Chief.