GRAND COTEAU — Riley Grisham has been terminated from his position as fire chief in Grand Coteau, according to a Facebook post by Grisham and reports received by KATC.
After multiple attempts to reach Grand Coteau Town Hall, KATC was able to speak with a secretary who informed us that the mayor would be out of office for the remainder of the day and was unable to provide a statement at that time.
Grisham claimed he was dismissed by Mayor Patrick Richard, as stated in his social media update. Grisham reportedly served the town for 8 years.
In a heartfelt statement, the former fire chief expressed his gratitude for the community's support, saying, “A lot of citizens appear to be upset, and I'm very grateful for all their support during this time. This is especially tough for me. It is no secret that our fire department has struggled. And we have worked very hard to get it to the point that it is now.”
The response from the fire department reflects a deep sense of pride and frustration among the ranks.
Grand Coteau Fire Captain Glen Maglalang noted, “And we built this department to something we are very, very proud of and just to let it go hurts. And we're doing that because we're tired of having an uphill battle. No matter how hard we fight, it seems like there's always another fight. Not even like a fire, like politics. We're fighting that. And we want support, and we're not getting that.”
This developing story will be updated as more information becomes available.
