Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Douglas Barry will retire Aug. 31. Barry was appointed in 2007 by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa with a mandate to turn the department around in the wake of several race and gender bias allegations, including sexual harassment cases that cost millions of dollars to settle.

The St. Paul (Minn.) Fire Department has appointed Fawn Hawkinson to district fire chief. The 16-year agency veteran is the first female district chief in the department. Also promoted were Jim Smith to assistant fire chief, Matt Simpson to deputy chief of EMS and Dennis Appleton to deputy fire chief.

San Diego Fire Chief Tracy Jarman announced her retirement after three years as chief and 25 years with the department. Jarman, 53, was the first woman to lead the department. A national search will be launched to find a successor.

After 32 years, Deputy Fire Chief Stephen Mahoney retired from the Waltham (Mass.) Fire Department.

Wesley Walker, a firefighter for the Belpre (Calif.) Volunteer Fire Department since 1951 and the department's chief since the late 1970s, has announced his retirement. Bob Frank will serve as interim chief until a permanent replacement is named.

Chief Gale Edward Davidson of the Martinsville (Ill.) Fire Department has died of cancer. He was a 31-year-veteran of the department and served as fire chief for 14 years.