The city of Sycamore swore in a new interim fire chief Tuesday in a ceremony that wasn’t publicized, days after an abrupt leadership change in the Sycamore Fire Department left many questions still unanswered.

Mike Thomas, a former DeKalb Fire Chief who retired in 2025 after more than 30 years with the department, was sworn in by Sycamore Clerk and Recorder Mary Kalk on Tuesday, according to a social media post from the Sycamore Fire Department.

He was appointed days after Fire Chief Bart Gilmore was suddenly out as chief. City officials have remained tight-lipped about the change, offering few details about why or when it was decided.

When reached later Tuesday, Thomas said he was honored to represent the Sycamore department. He said “at some point” city management contacted him to ask if he’d be interested in speaking to them about working as an interim fire chief.

“I was,” Thomas said. “So we started to discuss that, and it led to my being offered the job.”

Mayor Steve Braser and City Manager Michael Hall have refused to comment on Gilmore’s exit. A statement by released by the city March 6 – as speculation swirled on social media – suggested a staffing change had been in the works for “some time.”

When asked when he was offered the job to lead Sycamore’s department, Thomas said he couldn’t recall.

“Off the top of my head, it’s been – it wasn’t long, I couldn’t give you a timeline," Thomas said. “I just can’t recall off the top of my head.”

Hall said on March 5 that Thomas was expected to become the city’s interim fire chief without explaining why that decision was made.

But that was after a Sycamore firefighter – who Shaw Local has decided not to name – said Deputy Fire Chief Jim Ward was working that Thursday as the interim fire chief.

Ward on Tuesday said he thinks Thomas brings “a ton of experience” to the Sycamore Fire Department.

“I would say the membership here, we’re all pretty happy to have Chief Thomas on board with us,” Ward said. “He’s got a cool, calm, rational demeanor that we’re thankful to see.”

Hall, Braser and multiple alderpersons have refused to comment on the employment status of Gilmore, who’d been the fire chief since June 2023.

It’s not clear whether he is still employed with the city as of Tuesday.

After Thomas was sworn in, Shaw Local again asked Hall why the fire department is undergoing a change in leadership. Hall was also asked if the public was invited to Thomas’ swearing-in ceremony, and why it was held outside of a public meeting, as is typical for the city.

“The swearing-in was an administrative step required so Mr. Thomas could immediately assume the legal authority of the position while serving in an interim capacity,” Hall wrote in an email.

The city manager again did not provide answers to questions about the swearing-in not being public, or about the fire chief change.

Instead, Hall reiterated that “the City does not comment on personnel matters.”

The City’s issued statement March 6, which didn’t mention Gilmore, suggested that staffing changes within the Sycamore Fire Department had been on the table for a while.

In the statement, the city pointed to labor negotiations which began mid-2025 for firefighters and a desire to build on a 2015 strategic departmental plan.

Earlier this year, Gilmore told the City Council that fire department staffing had been a concern of his for some time in Sycamore.

“I’ve talked for the last three years about how we’re on the knife’s edge of being out of people,” Gilmore said at a Feb. 2 Council meeting.

Gilmore, who has not responded to multiple requests for comment, said during that meeting that a lack of staffing prevented the city’s ladder truck from responding to a major fire that destroyed Tom and Jerry’s Restaurant on Jan. 31. Nearby fire agencies brought their own trucks and crews to help, since Sycamore is part of the region’s Mutual Aid Box Alarm System.

Sycamore City Council authorized the purchase of a $1.4 million used ladder truck – the first of its kind for the city – in April 2025.

Gilmore also said during that meeting that the fire department was working with city staff to draft a hiring plan.

Hall on Tuesday didn’t mention any staffing challenges. Instead, he said that the department was operating “normally and emergency services remain fully staffed and available to the community.”

Thomas said he hopes hard work can accomplish some of the department’s goals. When asked what those goals were, Thomas mentioned staffing.

“I understand there’s a staffing issue that’s been discussed, and so we want to talk about that when the time’s right,” Thomas said. “I need some time to get my feet under me.”