RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — In a one-on-one sit-down interview, Richmond Mayor Danny addressed the process of hiring a new director for the city's Department of Public Utilities (DPU) and why the former director, April Bingham, decided to resign. On Wednesday, Jan. 15, the city announced that Bingham had resigned from her position as DPU director. In that same press release, the city announced the DPU's new leadership, with Anthony “Scott” Morris to now serve as the DPU's interim director. “He has local experience and he worked in wastewater here in Richmond for four years,” Avula said. “Early in his career, he spent a decade working in the public utility in Chesterfield -- so [he] brings a really great mix of leadership, of local operational experience and a state level regulatory experience.” ALL COVERAGE: Richmond Area Water Crisis Morris, a U.S. Navy veteran and professional engineer, recently served as the director of water for the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). He earned a doctorate of business administration from Liberty University and a master’s in information services from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU). However, questions remained as to why Bingham chose to resign or if Avula was involved in her decision. According to Avula, Bingham submitted her resignation early Wednesday morning and, alongside Avula, decided what would be best to improve the water treatment plant. “It was an amicable separation,” Avula said. “She has been remarkable in her assessment, her responsiveness and her being helpful.” The decision comes after a power outage at the water treatment plant left hundreds of thousands without running water from Jan. 6 through Jan. 11. Avula also addressed other issues that preceded his role as mayor, which included a report by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) following a July 2022 inspection of Richmond’s public water system, saying it was not up to par. Bingham didn’t respond to the report until 2025. MORE: ‘Safe to drink,' Expert reacts to public health concerns exposed in federal report on Richmond’s water supply Avula said he was not aware of the plant’s conditions, adding that it will be one of the many things to address in the city’s after-action report. “It's one of several things that we're going to be looking at to make sure that we have expected delivery dates and a better schedule for, you know, review of audits,” Avula said. Avula said the city is in the process of hiring a third-party investigator to see where things went wrong with infrastructure and why certain processes failed. Avula also said the plan is to work with state and federal partners to find funding for better treatment plant infrastructure.