Fmr. Fire Chief Byrd to become Toledo’s new Safety Director

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - Toledo has a new Safety Director Team. Retired Fire Chief Brian Byrd will take the top spot and Angel Tucker is the new Deputy Safety Director.

The team says they bring the best possible combination to the office.

Byrd spent his years leading the Toledo Fire Department and Tucker has spent several years in law enforcement most recently on the Oregon Police Department.

Both agree one of the top priorities will be hiring more police officers. Tucker says “A city the size of Toledo law enforcement should be somewhere between 750 and 800 We’re in the 600′S, so at most places when you take one-third of their workforce away, you’re not going to get the desired results so that’s one thing we can do is increase our staffing especially in that area of law enforcement.”

Byrd agrees to add that “Police across the country are having a terrible time recruiting for their positions. And some of that is because of the perceptions of law enforcement across the country. And I think we can have a positive impact on that because we understand both sides of that. Angel, he understands both worlds.”

Byrd takes office in February and Tucker will take his new post in January.

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