CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Coastal Bend residents got a chance to meet the four finalists up for the Corpus Christi Fire chief position Thursday.
The national search started after former chief Robert Rocha retired in January.
The finalists include Brandon Wade from Austin, Daniel Salazar from Dallas, Sam Pena from Houston, and Richie Quintero -- who is the current interim fire chief.
Residents were able to ask questions and learn more about the candidates’ qualifications at the American Bank Center.
Corpus Christi City Manager Peter Zanoni told 3NEWS is confident they will be able to select from the four candidates from the finalist to become the next fire chief.
"We want a chief who can come in and continue that relationship and move the fire department forward," he said.
Community members Rick and Debbie Schmalz said that the meet and greet shows just how far the city is willing to go to find the right fit.
"I'm impressed that the city is looking out and looking at a lot of candidates," Rick said. "I think that is real important the interim might be very good but I just like the fact that the city is opening it up."
Austin Assistant Fire Chief Brandon Wade has been serving his community for almost 25 years. He said that he was immediately drawn to the area because of it's diversity.
"Corpus is great, a diverse city business. The firefighters, the city council, they have invested in public safety and who wouldn't want to come to a community that values their citizens, their public that they are going to invest heavily in public safety," he said.
Daniel Salazar is the assistant fire chief with Dallas Fire and Rescue. He is a veteran of the department who has served his community for almost 28 years.
"I really enjoyed the process today, just engaging with the different panels. I know they are trying to get a sense for us as candidates, learning about our skill set our experiences, and just trying to make sure they make the right selection," he said. "Making sure the fire chief that is going to lead this city department is the right fit and the skill sets to make sure the department keeps progressing."
Sam Pena is the current fire chief for the City of Houston. While he declined an on-camera interview with 3NEWS, he told community members that he wants to come in and "add value to an already great department."
Rocha has led the city's fire department for the last 11 years.
"Average fire chief lasts from 3-7 years. I'm doing 11 years and I've been blessed," Rocha told 3NEWS after announcing his retirement. "I'm staying here in town."
Rocha spent more than 40 years as both a firefighter and in fire department leadership. The majority of his career was with the Kansas City Fire Department before he took the job as fire chief in Corpus Christi in December 2011.