Lynchburg Fire Dept Diversity Reform | Roanoke News

Lynchburg’s fire department faces a stark diversity gap—just 7% Black, despite 27% of the city’s population being Black—eroding community trust and sparking calls for urgent reform. A new report outlines 14 steps to fix recruitment, hiring, and workplace culture, including ending outdated practices that favor white males and launching targeted outreach. The city’s new fire chief, taking over in July, will lead these changes, while lessons from the police department’s successful diversity initiatives are being applied. Council has already approved funding for new HR and training roles to support transformation, aiming to build a fire department that mirrors and serves all residents with equity and trust. Support the show:Get a discount at https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/e6d5493916373e75