ORLANDO, Fla. — Orlando’s leaders heaped praise on the deputy chief who will be promoted to interim fire chief in a few days.
Jason Revoldt has served the department for 24 years as he rose through the ranks, which included overseeing the Arson & Bomb squad and new construction.
“This guy is a 10-8, as we say in law enforcement,” Commissioner Tony Ortiz said, using language that signified Revoldt is ready to assume command of the agency. As commissioner, Ortiz signs off on Mayor Buddy Dyer’s personnel decisions but does not play a role in the actual selection process.
If his promotion is permanent, Revoldt will become the fourth person to hold the title in six years. The first, Rod Williams departed amid a sexual harassment scandal in 2019. In 2021, his successor, Benjamin Barksdale, resigned after he was arrested in North Carolina.
Current Chief Charlie Salazar said his departure is for personal reasons, but it came shortly after the department lost its accreditation because it failed to supply the necessary paperwork.
Considering the agency’s past, Ortiz said a shift in the culture had already been in the works with the city focused on preparing deputies to assume the chief role.
“I think we have a tremendous staff within the fire department that can do the job,” Ortiz said. “This is going to be one of them, God willing. I have the utmost confidence in this interim chief that we have.”
He called the internal promotion a “morale booster.”
While he and others signaled Revoldt will be tasked with regaining accreditation status, he downplayed that status’ significance.
In firefighting, a department’s ISO rating determines how much property owners spend on insurance and signals how well equipped an agency is. Orlando Fire maintains an ISO rating of one, the highest possible status.
“We are ISO one,” Ortiz said. “Our public should continue to feel safe and continue to feel that our firefighters are going to do their job to respond and get there as soon as they need to.”
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