Costa Mesa fire chief retires

After a little more than three years at the helm, and with little pomp, Mike Morgan has retired as Costa Mesa’s Fire Department chief.

Morgan, 54, who was named chief in July 2007, retired Oct. 2. Deputy Chief Kirk Dominic will lead the department in the interim.

Morgan came from the Los Angeles Fire Department, where he served for 22 years and was an assistant chief. He led Costa Mesa through three years of budget woes, maintaining stellar response times to emergencies, even as staffing was reduced and minimum station levels were lowered.

Dominic will continue as the interim chief while the city updates the job requirements for chief and prepares promotional testing, city officials said.

Joseph Serna