Controversial FDNY Commissioner Laura Kavanagh announces resignation

One of New York City's top public officials has announced her decision to step down amid emerging controversies that have left many of her liberal allies stunned.

Laura Kavanagh, who gained notoriety as the FDNY's first female fire commissioner after having spent time working for the campaigns of Mayor Eric Adams and, in the more distant past, of Barack Obama, is poised to depart her position, as the New York Post reports.

Embattled chief to exit role

It was back in 2022 that Adams selected Kavanagh to lead the FDNY, and her resignation announcement came very shortly after the mayor expressed his confidence in her ability to continue in the role.

Speaking to the Post in the wake of an unrelated city function, Adams declared of Kavanagh, “I love her style -- I want her in my administration, whichever she decides to do.”

With that said, Adams seemed to hint at the possibility of her departure, adding, “She sat down with me some time ago and said, 'I'm looking to do some other things in my life at this moment,' and whenever she decides to do so, she will.”

“As long as she wants to be my fire commissioner, she will be my fire commissioner,” he added.

Apparently, she did not wish to remain on the job for very long, as she swiftly declared her intention to leave.

Controversies lead to resignation

However, insiders suggest that it was not a desire to explore new horizons that led to Kavanagh's farewell, but rather a host of growing controversies and scandals that threatened to engulf her tenure.

The chief was under fire over complaints about long emergency response times, disgruntled employees, and an uptick in lithium-ion battery fires across the city, not to mention an age discrimination lawsuit in which she was a target.

As the Post reported separately last year, Kavanagh was accused of demoting, ousting, forcing retirements, and retaliating against 15 department employees, all of whom were of older age, including the former assistant chief of fire prevention, the assistant chief of operations, and the chief of uniformed personnel.

One source close to the situation said in the wake of Kavanagh's recent announcement, “She was a political operative -- not a firefighter -- so her selection [for the job] was always an unusual choice, and she's been unable to do what she was brought in to do: put out political fires.”

Arguably indicative of Kavanagh's unsuitability for the job were leaked texts she had sent to liberal New York Attorney General Letitia James in which she lamented her inability to “fix” the bad behavior of the fire department's largely male staff, statements which to most observers are proof of the misplaced prioritization of DEI over the actual work of effectively fighting the Big Apple's fires.