Initially appointed as the interim fire chief in September, after Chief Dennis O’Reily announced his retirement, Taylor Cerne (pronounced Chur-nee) officially became chief on Monday, Nov. 14. A 17-year veteran of the Pittsburg Fire Department, Cerne began his fire career at the age of 20 while working at a grain elevator in Labette County when his boss asked him to volunteer with the Hackberry-Bartlett Fire Department in 2001.