Q&A: Olive fire chief calls for impeachment of Gov. Stitt

The Olive Fire Department is sharing and endorsing an online petition to impeach Gov. Kevin Stitt after the governor forced out the Director of Forestry Services last month.

News On 6's Sam Carrico has more from the fire chief about the reasons behind the petition.

Q: Why is the Olive Fire Department endorsing the petition?

Olive Fire Chief Jason Dobson says the Forestry Service didn't have the resources needed going into the March wildfires, and Dobson believes the buck stops with the governor.

Chief Dobson is frustrated with what he sees as an ongoing feud between Gov. Kevin Stitt and Oklahoma Forestry Services.

"When the governor said that it was a bad response by the forestry, well, that means it was a bad response to all of us, because we are an extension of the forestry services, because they just can't do it all in Oklahoma. So yeah, it was really a slap in the face for all of us," he said.

He said his entire crew supports the petition calling for the governor's impeachment.

Q: What is the governor saying?

Gov. Stitt says that forestry services didn't put enough people in hard-hit areas, but kept them in southern Oklahoma fighting smaller fires.

"I found out we had one forestry person in the Mannford fire that destroyed a bunch of homes, and yet we left 47 people in southeast Oklahoma, and that's when I said, I've got to hold someone accountable. As governor, this is unacceptable," he said.

The governor has repeatedly praised the efforts of local firefighters.

Q: What does Olive Fire hope the petition will accomplish?

Dobson says he hopes the petition sends a message.

"I just hope this was a wake-up call to him that Oklahomans aren't happy right now," he said. "We demand more answers. Until we get them answers, we're going to continue supporting and defending the Forestry Service and Director Goeller until proven otherwise."

Chief Dobson wants an independent investigation to look into what happened with Forestry Services leading up to the fires.

You can watch the entire interview with Gov. Stitt here.