A FIRE service has appointed a new director of operations and chief fire officer.
Gavin Watts will take on the role at West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service next month.
Mr Watts, 48, succeeds Sean Ruth, who is retiring after more than 28 years.
Mr Watts began his fire service career as a firefighter in Surrey in 1989 and worked in a number of operational and training roles before joining West Sussex as assistant chief fire officer in November 2013.
In that time he led the service’s response to the Shoreham Air Show tragedy in 2015 and to the major fire at Selsey Academy in 2016.
Council leader Louise Goldsmith congratulated Mr Watts on his appointment and said he had exactly the vision and leadership qualities to take the service forward.
“I believe it’s a really positive appointment for West Sussex.”
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