North Carolina fire chief resigns after Facebook post

BAYBORO, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina fire chef resigned after a comment he made on a Facebook post referring to people protesting the death of George Floyd at a local city hall.

Chief Steven Jennings of the Triangle Fire Department turned in his resignation in a letter on Monday, the Sun Journal of New Bern reported Tuesday. The fire department serves a portion of Pamlico County. Jennings had been chief for four years.

On an unidentified post showing a photograph of protesters lying on the ground during a “die-in” around City Hall in New Bern, Jennings commented, “Oh please come lay on the road in front of my driveway. You will quickly become a greasy spot in the highway.”

In his resignation letter, Jennings said that “rather than helping the situation at hand I have worsened it.”

“My words have reflected poorly on myself, my department, and the fire service in general,” Jennings wrote. “For that I sincerely apologize.”

Floyd was a handcuffed black man who died after a Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee on his neck for more than eight minutes as he pleaded for air. The officer has been charged with murder.