Johnny Morris, Jr.Fire Chief
More than 33 years employed with MFRD - Born in Mobile, Alabama and an alumnus of John L. Leflore High School, Chief Johnny Morris, Jr joined the Mobile Fire Rescue Department in January 1990. After graduating from the Fire Academy, he was assigned to Truck 17. In November of that same year, Chief Morris, a Veteran United States Marines, was deployed to operate in the Persian Gulf War. He continued his fire service journey, knowledge, and education through attending Fire Science, Leadership, Management, and Paramedics certification programs at the Alabama Fire College, The National Fire Academy, Bishop State Community College, Shelton State Community College, and the University of South Alabama. Chief Morris served six years as a Paramedic on an ambulance.
Chief Morris continued his career by reaching the rank of Captain in June 2000. As a Captain, he gained valuable experiences by being assigned to various units: Engine Company, Truck Company, Hazardous Material Response Unit, and Training Division. He was promoted to District Chief in 2003. He served as a command chief for over ten years in District 2 and served the department as an Administrative Chief in Communications and Training for over five years. During that time he completed several fire related courses and gained numerous awards, few of them are Fire Instructor, Fire Officer III, Incident Safety Officer, Hazmat Tech, Fire Inspector, and Hazmat Incident Commander. He also graduated from the Carl Holmes Executive Development Institute from Dillard and Clark Universities in 2007. In 2017, after attending the Institute of Police Technology and Management’s Police Internal Affairs Certified Training Course, He was tasked to oversee the department’s Discipline Standards, Investigations, and Hearings.
Chief Morris was promoted to Deputy Chief in July 2018. He oversaw and gave guidance to the Training Division, Emergency Medical Services Division, Communications Division, and Community Risk Reduction Divisions. In August 2020, Chief Morris was promoted to the other Assistant Fire Chief position as Chief Of Staff. In October 2023, Morris was promoted to Fire Chief. He has developed several new policies and programs that will continue to inspire us to serve our community and to aid in leading this organization to become one of the best in the nation. He believes and is motivated by this Bible verse: “To whom much is given, much will be required.”