Zurliene pinned as PPD assistant chief – pdclarion.com
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Clear skies. Low 62F. Winds light and variable.
Updated: July 29, 2026 @ 10:46 pm
Allie Zurliene gets a good look at the new assistant chief badge on her dad, Princeton Police officer Craig Zurliene’s uniform after interim PPD Chief Bobby Wood offered him the badge following Tuesday’s Princeton Common Council and Board of Public Works and Safety meetings. Zurliene’s wife, daughters and mother attended the meetings to witness the event.
Editor, The Daily Clarion
Allie Zurliene gets a good look at the new assistant chief badge on her dad, Princeton Police officer Craig Zurliene’s uniform after interim PPD Chief Bobby Wood offered him the badge following Tuesday’s Princeton Common Council and Board of Public Works and Safety meetings. Zurliene’s wife, daughters and mother attended the meetings to witness the event.
PRINCETON — Interim Police Chief Bobby Wood introduced his new assistant chief, Craig Zurliene to Princeton’s Common Council and Board of Works Tuesday night, with Zurliene’s family present to see him pinned with his new badge.
Wood, who succeeds Derek McGraw after McGraw retired to head Deaconess Gibson Hospital’s security police, told the council Zurliene has served as the department’s assistant team leader for its emergency response tactical team. “He has taken the ball and handled,” Wood reported.
The Fairfield, Illinois native worked as a police officer in Wayne County, Illinois before coming to Princeton in 2020. Wood praised his work with counterparts in Vincennes for the joint ERT team, and for his help in other functions as Wood takes on the chief’s duties.
During Tuesday’s session, Princeton Fire Department Chief Mike Pflug reported PFD has responded to more than 200 calls since Jan. 1, with an average response time of less than four minutes.
“Though we started with a small number of employees, we have answered the calls tirelessly and with pride in our city,” he said. “I could not be any prouder of the men and woman who chose to come with me to the City of Princeton.
“Teamwork is the key element to our department,” he told the board of works Tuesday night. “Since Jan. 1 there has been clear and constant communication between me and our shift captains. All decisions have been made together and we tackle any issue the same way.”
Pflug said the department hiring process is completed, bringing aboard five new firefighters as soon as Public Employee Retirement Fund eligibility is approved.
He said crews have been updating trucks and deep cleaning the fire station, conducting maintenance to furnaces in the buildings along with needed repairs. A washer and dryer were replaced Jan. 4, and Pflug said an oil water separator tank in the bay floor has rust holes and needs replaced because it is allowing the fill under the concrete floor to leak out, causing a void under the slab. He said he hopes to have the problem solved within the next month.
He told the board some radios need replacement, noting 800 MHz radios are needed for the reserve engine, rescue trucks and brush truck, and the chief’s vehicle. Portable radios are also needed for the new hires, and an 800 MHz radio is needed for the station, where a portable radio is now being used.
Pflug said he doesn’t expect to make all the replacements at once, but the total cost would be $34,000.
Editor, The Daily Clarion
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