Episode #4: Interview with Deputy Chief Michael Pruitt

Michael Pruitt is a 36 year veteran of the fire service, having served 28 of those as a career firefighter. He started his fire service career full time with the City of Franklin, Indiana Fire Department. After seven years, he was hired as a Firefighter / Paramedic with the Wayne Township Fire Department in Indianapolis, Indiana, where we rose to Captain's rank. During his tenure with Wayne Township Fire, he served as a Suppression Captain, Deputy Chief of Special Operations, and the department's Public Information Officer.  He retired from the Wayne Township Fire Department in February 2020. He was hired as the Deputy Chief of the Bargersville Indiana Fire Department, where he oversees the daily operations and serves as the PIO. The Bargersville Fire Department Facebook Page.

 Michael also serves as a FEMA Urban Search & Rescue Team member, Indiana Task Force 1 as a Safety Officer and PIO. He has responded with the team to multiple natural disasters around the country. He has also served as a Wildland Fire PIO with deployments to several western states. In 2017 he was appointed as a PIO to the FEMA Urban Search & Rescue Incident Support Team and the FEMA US&R Public Affairs workgroup. Altogether, Michael has served as a PIO for over 20 years.

 Outside of serving as a PIO, Michael serves as a Special Deputy / SWAT Medic with Johnson County Sheriffs Office and was recently elected to serve as the Johnson County Coroner. He is a US Navy Veteran of Desert Shield/ Desert Storm. Michael is currently working on his Bachelor's Degree in Emergency Management from Purdue Global. He is married to his wife Angela, and they have one son Morgan who just started his fire service career with the Wayne Township Fire Department.

Mike's Twitter account can be accessed here.