CANTON – Kwameshallahu Akbar Bennett is poised to become the city s first Black fire chief.
The historic event happens one year shy of the department s bicentennial. The fire department was established in 1822, the same year Canton was incorporated as a village, according to the Canton Professional Firefighters Association.
Bennett, 50, will be promoted from division chief and sworn in at 10 a.m. Monday in council chambers at City Hall.
Bennett has served as interim fire chief since Chief Thomas Garra retired March 2 after 29 years on the force.
His retirement left Bennett and three battalion chiefs vying for the chief s post. Battalion Chief Steven Henderson will be sworn in Monday as the department s new division chief.
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Canton Fire Department to swear in 1st African American chief
K. Akbar Bennett says he never set out to make history. The department has only had white chiefs in its first 200 years of existence. Author: January Keaton Updated: 12:03 AM EDT April 24, 2021
CANTON, Ohio The Canton Fire Department has reached a major milestone, ushering in its first African American fire chief. I cannot dismiss the historical context of it, current Division Chief K. Akbar Bennett told 3News. My goal was never to be the first African American fire chief; my goal was always not to be the last.
Bennett will be sworn in next week as the first African American fire chief in the almost-200-year history of the department. The 50-year-old father of two and grandfather of one says his new position wasn t appointed; it was earned.
April 19, 2021
A single-vehicle crash early Saturday morning in Fulton County resulted in the death of a Canton man.
According to the Fulton County Sheriff’s Department, at around 12-30 am, deputies were called out to Randolph Road, northwest of Canton, for a single-vehicle accident.
The sheriff’s office says that an initial investigation revealed that a 2016 Chevrolet of an unknown model had left the roadway, then became airborne over a creek before striking an embankment.
45-year-old Timothy J. Uryasz, of rural Canton, was the lone occupant of the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene by Fulton County’s Coroner Steve Hines.
Canton Fire Department awarded $15K grant for equipment
COURTESY OF THE CANTON FIRE DEPARTMENT
The Canton Fire Department is one of nearly 300 fire departments across the state to have been awarded a grant as part of the Department of Fire Services fiscal year 2021 Firefighter Safety Equipment Grant Program.
The $15,000 grant awarded to the Canton Fire Department will be used to purchase five new portable radios that have digital transmission and Bluetooth capabilities. This will allow for clearer emergency communications and the ability to stream audio directly into the facepiece of the firefighters self-contained breathing apparatus, which eliminates the need to speak into the microphone of the radio.