Jessamine County Fire District Capt. Gerald Wheeler was named assistant fire chief Monday at a fire-board meeting, replacing Dale Horton, who stepped down last month.
“There were four people, four officers, who put in for it, and all four of them were very qualified,” fire-district chairman Ron Eldridge said. “It just came down to the committee chose (Wheeler) due to the fact of his commitment to the fire district over the past eight to 10 years.”
Wheeler has been with the fire district since February 1998 and had served as captain for five years. He is the son of the late county fire chief Mike Wheeler, who died in the line of duty Jan. 2, 1993.
The assistant-chief post is a part-time position.
