Sitka is set to confirm a fire chief who's already been doing the job

Sitka is poised to make Brian McLaughlin its fire chief official. The Assembly is scheduled to vote Tuesday on the appointment, recommended by the city administrator — though McLaughlin already appears to have been filling the role.

He is not new to the department, where personnel records list him as search and rescue captain, and the city has already referred to him as chief in public. A city release about a June emergency response on Harbor Mountain identified "Fire Chief Brian McLaughlin" at the scene, and the city held a public meet-and-greet with him earlier this month. It has not said publicly whether he has been serving in an acting capacity; Tuesday's vote is the formal hire.

The job carries the department's operational authority — running its staff and all its work, from fire suppression and emergency medical services to search and rescue and disaster response — with the chief on call around the clock, rotating with the assistant chief.

The department McLaughlin would lead runs largely on volunteers. By the city's own count, about 85 volunteers work alongside 14 paid staff to cover the 4,710 square miles of the City and Borough of Sitka, handling fire, medical, hazardous-materials, rescue and prevention work. Volunteers respond straight to scenes with their gear in their personal vehicles — an arrangement the city credits for fast response times, and one that puts much of the load on unpaid responders. The fire division averages about 200 calls a year.