Woman to lead Fort Wayne Fire Department for first time

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) - A 17-year veteran of the Fort Wayne Fire Department will become the first woman to lead Indiana's second largest fire department.

Assistant Chief Amy Biggs will take over for retiring Chief Pete Kelly on June 29. Fort Wayne Mayor Tom Henry announced the appointment on Wednesday.

Henry says the fact that Biggs is a woman brings diversity, but that wasn't really why he picked her. He cites her professionalism and organizational skills. She was promoted to assistant chief in 2008 and has led the fire department's human relations department since then.

As chief, she will oversee fire protection for 110 square miles and manage a department of more than 380 firefighters posted at 18 fire stations.

The city says there's fewer than 40 female career fire chiefs nationwide.

"I think there's been many women in the fire service across the country that have broken those lines and have graduated to the position of fire chief, and this is just another momentous moment in the progressive nature of the city's administration and moving forward," Biggs told 24-Hour News 8 news partner WANE-TV . "From a perspective of being a female, again I'm honored. But the qualifications, I think, are really the focus of the appointment."