By Alex Lloyd Gross
City of Philadelphia Mayor James Kenney has made official his appointments of a new Fire and Prison Commissioner today, April 12, 2016. During an afternoon media availability ,he introduced Adam Thiel as the new Fire Commissioner and Blanche Carney as the new boss of the Philadelphia Prison System. Both have a lot of work to do. There will be many challenges to their jobs when they take office in mid May. They were not sworn into office today, that will come later.
“I wanted a fresh set of eyes looking at the Fire Department “, Kenney said, when asked why Acting Commissioner Derrick Sawyer was not asked to stay. Both Thiel and Kenney said that they hoped Sawyer would remain with the Philadelphia Fire Department. “I look forward to speaking with him, and finding out what his interests are”, Thiel said. Thiel was the Chief of Alexandria Virginia Fire Department. His career spans four states before this appointment. , Maryland, North Carolina, Arizona and Virginia.
Blanche Carney Is a Philadelphia resident and is not stranger to the Philadelphia prisons. She started her career there as a Social Worker. She has worked in many capacities inside the prison system except as a prison guard. Most recently, she was the Deputy Commissioner for Restorative and Transitional Services. One of the largest problems with the prison system is the smuggling of cellphones to inmates.
While Carney will not have to worry about relocation, Thiel will have to move his residence to live in the city.