Merced Fire Chief Derek Parker will step down from his role on Friday, after serving just over three years as the city’s top firefighter.
Parker, 47, told The Merced FOCUS he has accepted a job as assistant fire chief at Sacramento Fire Department, his previous employer of 21 years. Parker said the new job will be an opportunity to grow further in a bigger city.
His first day on the new job will be Monday. “I am excited to go back and work with a bunch of people that I know really, really well,” Parker said.
A Merced native, Parker said he experienced tremendous growth during his time as chief. Some of that experience included spearheading response efforts when massive flooding happened due to storms in 2023.
That flood experience will be useful in his new job, as Sacramento is one of 28 FEMA Urban Search and Rescue teams in the country.
Although Parker will have a new employer up north, he still plans to be a part of the Merced community where he has deep roots. “I am not vanishing into thin air to never be seen again,” Parker said. “I think there’s a lot of really great people here in Merced.”
Parker was hired by Merced Fire Department in December 2020. At the time, he was a battalion chief at Sacramento Fire Department. He took the reins of the department from Billy Alcorn, who today is chief of the Fresno Fire Department.
There was much excitement when Parker was hired, due to his existing community connections. A 1994 graduate of Merced High, for years his family owned Parker’s Hardware, which closed last year.
The City of Merced sent a news release Wednesday night, saying City Manager Scott McBride was appreciative of Parker’s achievements during his time as chief.
The release said Parker played a pivotal role in enhancing emergency preparedness, implementing advanced training programs for firefighters and strengthening collaborative partnerships with local agencies.
The city said Parker’s additional achievements included securing $4 million in funding from Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria for a new fire station and emergency operations center.
He also secured $3 million in funding from Senator Anna Caballero for the Hawk Regional Training Center, and secured $9 million in a SAFER grant from FEMA to hire 24 additional firefighters, bringing the department up to four-person engine crews.
It’s still unclear who Parker’s replacement will be. City officials Wednesday said they would commence a search for a new fire chief, but an interim has not been named publicly in the meantime.
When asked what he would miss the most about his time in Merced, Parker mentioned the many events put on by the Merced City Firefighters Union, from the pancake breakfast to the fireman’s ball.
Parker said he hopes to take some of that positive “small town atmosphere” to his future endeavors.
“You don’t come and join a fire department just because of the buildings and equipment. It’s a personable job.”
Victor A. Patton is editor-in-chief of The Merced FOCUS, a nonprofit newsroom covering the San Joaquin Valley.