CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – The Montgomery County Commission celebrated a passing of a torch Monday night as they voted to approve the appointment of new County Fire Chief Michael Rios and celebrated the legacy of his predecessor, Ed Baggett.
“We find it appropriate to honor Chief Baggett, he has spent a lot of time with Montgomery County Fire Service,” said Mayor Wes Golden at the meeting. “He’s been doing this as an additional part of his job, and it’s been a volunteer position. So, he sacrifices his time, his evenings, family time to do this job, and I just want to tell him how much we appreciate it.”
Golden presented Baggett with a proclamation for his dedication to serving the community for over 38 years, which was met with a standing ovation.
Rios and his family were asked to come forward, and he was officially appointed the new Montgomery County fire chief.
“This means the world,” Rios later told Clarksville Now. “I look forward to making Montgomery County safer to live, work and play. When it comes to the firefighters, they aren’t working for me, I’m working for them and with them.”
Rios, who has over 22 years of firefighting experience, said some of the first things he hopes to accomplish are looking over the budget to understand department needs and wants, as well as the needs of the firefighters.
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He served as assistant chief of administration for Clarksville Fire Rescue from 2021 to 2024. In this role, he supervised administrative personnel, coordinated all community activities, and assisted in policy review. Prior to that, he held various roles including in fire prevention, engineer, emergency medical responder and firefighter. He earned a Bachelor of Science with a concentration in Fire Administration from Columbia Southern University in 2022.
The county fire chief position was created by converting the position of director of emergency services, according to previous reports. With the conversion of the position, no new funding will be required.
About Chief Baggett
Baggett began his firefighting career at East Montgomery Volunteer Fire Service shortly after the station opened in 1986, and worked his way up the ranks, being appointed district chief of East Montgomery in 1989, deputy fire chief for Montgomery County Volunteer Fire Service in 2011, and fire chief for Montgomery County Volunteer Fire Service in March of 2018 where he has served for the last 6 1/2 years.
He has been an emergency medical responder and is a certified hazardous materials technician and has worked diligently in getting the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Fire Protection Rate lowered from a rating of 9 to 6 within five road miles from a county volunteer fire station, thereby reducing homeowner’s insurance premiums for our citizens residing in the county outside city limits.
Baggett has been instrumental in getting funding for the new Montgomery County Fire Training Burn Tower scheduled to open this fall. He is a current member of the Tennessee Fire Chief’s Association, and the Emergency Management Association of Tennessee.
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