Akron officially has a new fire chief.
Leon Henderson was ceremonially sworn in as chief Tuesday at the Akron Civic Knight Stage.
Akron Mayor Shammas Malik promoted Henderson in early Juneafter former Chief Joseph Natko retired.
Natko now serves in Malik’s administration as the Assistant to the Mayor for Emergency Management.
Henderson started with the fire department as a paramedic in 1990, according to a June news release.
“Vince Lombardi once said, ‘The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor,’” Henderson said in the release. “It is a true privilege to serve the Akron community, and the firefighters/EMTs and administrative staff of our department. I will work closely with our teams as we continue to prioritize the safety of our residents.”
Henderson served as District Chief and Deputy Chief before his most recent promotion.
Henderson has led the department in diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, officials said in the news release. He recently helped the department achieve a 44% minority recruitment rate in the most recent class of firefighters — the highest in its history, according to the release.
He also served on the City of Akron's Racial Equity and Social Justice Taskforce and launched the Akron Fire Department Human Relations Committee, according to the release.
He also helped create some fire prevention programs for Akron schools and businesses.
“Chief Henderson is a dedicated public servant with 34 years of service to the Akron community. He possesses the attitude, skillset and leadership qualities we were seeking for the role,” Malik said in the release. “We have an outstanding fire department, and I am excited to see how it continues to grow and thrive under Chief Henderson’s leadership.”
Henderson will take part in a community forum next week at the Downtown branch of the Akron-Summit County Public Library. He’ll share his vision for the department and residents can ask him questions, according to the release.
The Akron Fire Department has faced staffing and financial challenges in recent years. In 2023, the city ended its longtime contract with private ambulatory service American Medical Response, which had been handling about half of all hospital transports.
With the increased workload, firefighters and EMS workers had to pick up more overtime shifts last year. In September, former Chief Natko warned city council the department might run out of its overtime budget.
Now, the department has 402 firefighters and medics, up two from 2023, Malik said during budget hearings earlier this year.
This is the highest staffing level in 30 years for the fire department, he said.
