TEMPLE, Texas (KXXV) — The City of Temple announced the retirement of Temple Fire & Rescue Chief Mitch Randles on Friday. Chief Randles will retire Jan. 5, ending an 11-year tenure with the city and a 40-year career in public safety.
Randles joined Temple in August 2014 after serving more than 23 years with the Joplin Fire Department in Missouri, where he also retired as fire chief.
“I greatly appreciated my time in Temple and all of the support our residents, City Council, City Manager, and staff have given to the department, my family, and myself during my tenure here at Temple Fire & Rescue. I feel that because of this support, Temple Fire Rescue is truly a leader in the public safety community and is set to continue to lead the way well into the future.”
Assistant Chief Landy Setzer will serve as interim fire chief while the city conducts a nationwide search for Randles' successor. The search will begin after the first of the year.
Career highlights
Randles has held numerous roles throughout his four-decade career, including paramedic, police officer, firefighter, driver, captain, fire marshal and assistant chief before becoming fire chief.
During his time in Joplin, Randles helped create a special operations team, upgraded the fire apparatus fleet, oversaw construction of three new fire stations and designed a regional public safety training center. He also helped lead the city's response and recovery efforts following the devastating 2011 EF-5 tornado that destroyed more than a third of Joplin's homes and businesses, including two fire stations and Randles' own home.
In Temple, Randles restructured the department to improve operations and oversaw development of a firefighter training academy. He increased training opportunities for Temple Fire Rescue and regional response partners, improved the fire apparatus fleet's aerial ladder capabilities and constructed the first phase of the Fire Training Center.
Randles also created a fire master plan that included relocating Fire Station No. 7, planning five new fire stations and adding numerous apparatus and personnel.
Major responses
During his Temple tenure, Randles participated in several notable emergency responses, including the Highway 35 bridge collapse in Salado, Hurricane Harvey, Winter Storm Uri, the COVID-19 pandemic response, the Highway 36 heavy haul incident and the 2024 Temple tornado.
Community involvement in search
The city plans to involve both community members and Temple Fire & Rescue personnel in selecting the next fire chief. This may include focus groups, surveys and participation in the interview process.
The city thanked Randles for his "outstanding service, dedication, and leadership" during his time with Temple Fire & Rescue.
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