Oakland fire chief resigning in June, leaving another one of city's departments without leader

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- Oakland Fire Chief Reginald Freeman is resigning from his position next month, he wrote in a letter sent on Monday.

In the resignation letter addressed to the Oakland city administrator, Freeman says he will step down from the chief role on June 22 for a job in the private sector.

"This decision has been painful for the aforementioned reasons but one that my family and I believe is the necessary one. I will miss the Oakland Firefighters deeply as well as the city of Oakland and all the great things that the Town has to offer," he said in the letter.

Freeman was appointed Oakland's fire chief in April of 2021. He comes from Hartford, Connecticut where he was fire chief for five years.

Freeman said it was a difficult decision and comes as the city faces a $350 million budget deficit.

Oakland's mayor proposed cutting one fire engine in a move to save $20 million.

Freeman's resignation leaves another one of Oakland's departments without a leader. Oakland Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong was fired by Mayor Sheng Thao earlier this year.

If you're on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live