News

The Ministry of Financial Services and Home Affairs is pleased to announce the appointment of three Caymanians as the new Divisional Managers for the Cayman Islands Fire Service (CIFS).

Mr. Dwight Randy Rankin is the Divisional Manager for Domestic and Mr. Whitman Tatum is the Divisional Manager for Aviation; both gentlemen are based in Grand Cayman. Mr. Witney Tatum is the Divisional Manager for Aerodrome and Domestic and is based in Cayman Brac, with additional responsibility for Little Cayman.

The promotions are another milestone in CIFS’ journey to becoming a world class uniformed service. They are the direct result of the career progression strategy the CIFS and the Ministry of Home Affairs have continued to implement over the past two years.

The strategy focuses on providing leadership training opportunities for those in CIFS hoping to advance to more senior roles. One such opportunity provided to interested candidates was a chance to work with personnel from local company RESOLVE.

In response to the announcement of the appointments, Minister for Financial Services and Home Affairs, Hon. Tara Rivers, JP said: “We are extremely pleased to have three experienced and highly capable Caymanians fill these important roles. I look forward to seeing them continue to strive for excellence as we work towards creating a world class Fire Service.”

Divisional Manager for Domestic, Mr. Dwight Randy Rankin will assist the Deputy Chief Fire Officer (Domestic) in the strategic leadership, readiness and delivery of emergency fire and rescue services for Grand Cayman.

With 26 years’ experience serving in the CIFS, Mr. Rankin is both an academically and technically proficient fire officer. He holds an associate degree in Public Administration from CSC and chose to further his studies at Florida State Fire College and the Fire Service College in London.

Mr. Whitman Tatum, the Divisional Manager for Aviation, will assist with the management of the aviation division and provide aerodrome firefighting and rescue services at Owen Roberts International Airport.

During his 23-year career with CIFS Mr. Tatum has worked on all three islands. Originally from Cayman Brac where he was most recently based, Mr. Tatum has moved to Grand Cayman to take up his new position. He is passionate about fostering a world class Fire Service of which everyone can be proud.

As the Divisional Manager for Aerodrome and Domestic on Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, Mr. Witney Tatum will be responsible for overseeing the delivery of both critical services in the Sister Islands.

With a total of 32 years’ experience, Mr. Tatum has global experience with Fire Services having worked across the Cayman Islands as well as in the UK. He plans to use his expertise to ensure that a high standard of service is delivered in Cayman Brac and Little Cayman.

Commenting on the recent appointments, Chief Officer for the Ministry for Financial Services and Home Affairs, Dr. Dax Basdeo, Ph.D., JP, added that he was pleased to be able to fill the positions internally.

“An individual’s suitability for the role remains the highest priority when the Ministry selects a candidate at the conclusion of a recruitment exercise. We are pleased to see that the investment we’ve made in professional development and training has helped our officers compete in recruitment exercises with confidence as promotion opportunities become available,” Dr. Basdeo added.

“We are striving to ensure that the most suitable individuals are identified as part of fair and transparent processes across all recruitment exercises for posts in the Fire Service.”

All three fire officers took up their new posts on 15^th July 2019.