Morris selected as Davenport Fire Assistant Chief/Fire Marshal

Today, Jim Bickford, Davenport Interim Fire Chief, is pleased to announce that Capt. Jim Morris has been promoted to Assistant Chief/Fire Marshal.   Morris has served as Interim Fire Marshal since October 2017 following the unexpected death of Fire Marshal Mike Hayman.    “Jim Morris has served the Fire Department and the citizens of Davenport for more than 20 years, and during that time, he has developed a strong record of accomplishments and worked alongside a tremendous mentor in Mike Hayman for 10 years. I am extremely proud of the depth of experience and knowledge of our Davenport Fire personnel and that was made abundantly clear during the search for a fire marshal.  I know Jim will serve Davenport well in this important role.” Assistant Chief Morris is a highly-trained, 22-year veteran of the Davenport Fire Department with significant experience in both inspections and investigations.  As the newly appointed Fire Marshal, Morris will have oversight of the Fire Prevention Bureau, fire code enforcement, fire and life safety prevention and education activities, and fire investigations in the City of Davenport.   “I have spent most of my career working towards this position and am excited for the opportunity to continue and honor the legacy that Chief Hayman left with all of us.  He taught me a lot about compromise, diplomacy, teamwork, and prepared me well for this assignment.”   Morris joined the Davenport Fire Department as a Firefighter in 1996.  He was promoted to Engineer in 2002 and to Lieutenant in 2007.  Morris developed an interest in fire investigations during his tenure at Station 5 while working under a station captain who was a sworn investigator with the department.  He was selected to be trained as a Fire Cause & Origin Specialist in March 2007.  In April 2007, Morris was appointed to the Lieutenant Fire Marshal role, where he worked under the late Chief Hayman for the last ten years.  In this role, he had oversight of the department-wide commercial inspection