Division Chief Scott Goldstein To Serve As Acting Fire Chief

Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett selected Division Chief Scott Goldstein to serve as the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service (MCFRS) Acting Fire Chief, effective January 1, 2015. Most recently Chief Goldstein was assigned as the Operations Division Chief responsible for all field delivery of fire, medical and emergency response services to a community of just over one (1) million citizens spread out over 500 square miles.

The Operations Division is the largest Division within MCFRS and provides nearly 300 daily staffing positions spread over Montgomery County's 37 fire and rescue stations. Daily staffing includes over 50 pieces of large fire and rescue apparatus, 40 EMS transport units, and several dozen specialized and support units. The Department responds to more than 110,000 emergency calls for service annually with a departmental budget of about $218 million dollars.

Prior to his assignment as the Division Chief for Operations, Chief Goldstein served as the Special Operations Section Chief, from April 2009 to May 2013. The Special Operations Section includes; hazardous materials, technical rescue, water rescue, and bomb squad response, interoperability radio cache, Emergency Operations Center liaison and staffing, as well as fire and rescue involvement in all mass gatherings/special events. In Chief Goldstein’s over 23 years with MCFRS he has also been assigned as the Operations Chief Executive Officer, Field Operations Battalion Chief, Deputy Safety Officer, shift supervisor and fire fighter.

Chief Goldstein is actively involved in the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Fire/Police Chiefs subcommittees and was the co-chair of the Law Enforcement and EMS working group that developed a model policy on intergrated operations of law enforcement and fire and rescue personnel during law enforcement incidents.

Since 1990, Chief Goldstein has been a member of the Maryland Urban Search and Rescue Task Force. He has been an Assistant Task Force Leader, Logistics Manager, and Logistics Specialist. Chief Goldstein was instrumental in equipment research and purchasing and the development of its task force cache. He responded as a member of the FEMA Incident Support Team to the Oklahoma City bombing and Hurricane Opal and deployed as a member of MD‑TF1 to the Northridge Earthquake, Hurricanes Charley, Fran, Floyd, Marilyn, and George and to the Pentagon terrorist incident on September 11, 2001.

Chief Goldstein holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Maryland University College and is presently enrolled in the Naval Post Graduate School working towards a Master Degree in Homeland Security with a planned graduation in December 2015.

He, his wife and children reside in Montgomery County.