Mayor John Whitmire confirms Houston Fire Chief Sam Peña is out and will be replaced by Thomas Muñoz

Houston, Texas – Houston Mayor John Whitmire confirmed to KPRC 2 Investigates Friday morning that a new Houston Fire Department chief, Thomas Muñoz, will replace current Chief Sam Peña.

“He’s considering retiring. I thank him for his service,” Whitmire said in a call with KPRC 2’s Mario Diaz.

The mayor added: “He has served us through some tough times. I said during the campaign that my department heads would have six months to prove themselves and I think it’s time for a change. I think we can do better, in fact, we will do better.”

Muñoz served the city as deputy director of the Office of Emergency Management and emergency coordinator, and has more than 26 years of experience as a first responder, emergency manager and Coast Guardsman, according to his city of Houston biography.

In a text message, Peña told KPRC 2 Investigates Mario Diaz: “I have not had any conversations with the mayor about this.”

Peña, a 28-year veteran, has been chief of the Houston Fire Department since Dec. 19, 2016. During his tenure, he led the third-largest municipal fire department in the country, with more than 3,000 personnel. He was also at the center of a bitter legal battle between the union and his former boss, Mayor Sylvester Turner. The lengthy battle took a toll on Peña’s reputation with the union and firefighters, creating morale problems within the ranks.

He previously served for three years and nine months as fire chief in El Paso, Texas.

According to the HFD website, Peña completed his paramedic training at the Texas Tech University Health Science Center EMS Division in 1998. He previously served as task force leader for the El Paso Hazardous Materials Team and Special Rescue Team; coordinator of the Combined Search and Rescue (ComSAR) Mountain Rescue Team; chief of strategic planning, public information office, chief of training, and deputy chief of emergency operations. Chief Peña served in the City of Houston Unified Command, directing Houston Fire Department assets during Hurricane Harvey, Tropical Storm Imelda, Tropical Storm Beta, Hurricane Nicholas, Winter Storm Uri, Super Bowl 51, the 2017, 2019, 2021 World Series, and the 2020 Watson Grinding Mill explosion.

Peña holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Texas at El Paso and served for four years as a command and control specialist in the U.S. Air Force.

Peña is a member of the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the IAFC Committee on Terrorism and Homeland Security, the Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association, the National Fire Protection Association and the National Association of Search and Rescue.