Matt Daniel Promoted As Fire Chief
Tuesday, October 24th, 2023
Matt Daniel was named chief of the Dalton Fire Department at Tuesday morning's meeting of the Public Safety Commission. Daniel had previously been named as the sole finalist for the position on October 5th after the commission interviewed four applicants for the position from within the ranks of the fire department. The commission voted unanimously 4-0 in favor of his appointment Tuesday.
"I appreciate everything that you’ve done in the past and everything you'll do going forward," PSC chairman Truman Whitfield told Chief Daniel after his appointment. "We don’t expect anything more than what we’ve expected in the past which is an elite, leading agency in northwest Georgia and the state of Georgia and to keep doing the great things that the Dalton Fire Department does everyday."
Caption: Matt Daniel's wife Sherry pins his chief's badge onto his uniform
“I’m humbled and honored to have the opportunity to lead the men and women of the Dalton Fire Department. It’s an exciting adventure and I’m ready and willing to accept the challenge and move the department forward and serve the community,” Daniel said earlier this month after being selected for the position.
Chief Daniel is a 20-year veteran of the Dalton Fire Department, having joined the agency in January 2003. Before joining the DFD, Daniel completed his NPQ fire qualification with the Jefferson (Ga.) Fire Department. Daniel served in the department’s Suppression Division for nearly 15 years, rising through the ranks and serving as a member of the Special Operations Team, HazMat Team, and on the Georgia Search and Rescue team. In 2017, he became Dalton’s fire marshal and coordinator for the department’s Preventions Division. In 2019, he was promoted to the rank of captain and in 2021, he was named the chief of the division. He’s a graduate of Dalton High School and studied at the University of North Georgia and Truett McConnell University.
Chief Daniel is filling the vacancy left by the departure of Todd Pangle from the Dalton Fire Department to become Dalton’s assistant city administrator.
