Hillsborough’s Fire Marshal and Emergency Management Coordinator Jerry Wagner retired this week following 15 years of working with the town.

The town recently shared a release about his retirement to the community, which began on Wednesday.

“Hillsborough is the hometown of my father, so it is was only fitting that I look out for those he knew and loved,” Wagner said in the release. “As assistant fire marshal for Orange County in 1994, I performed the first round of fire inspections ever to be conducted in the town, as the county and town were under a contract for that service then.”

Wagner began working with Hillsborough in September 2005, initially as both a fire marshal and a code enforcement officer. Since the job was reclassified in 2007 to Emergency Management Coordinator, Wagner has coordinated the town’s response to disasters, conducted inspections of facilities and performed fire investigations. Before joining the town staff, he worked as an assistant fire marshal for Orange County, a firefighter with the Mebane Fire Department and was deployed to Iraq in 2004 with the North Carolina Army National Guard.

“I appreciate Jerry’s years of dedicated service to Hillsborough, the county, and our country as a deployed Army National Guard soldier,” wrote Hillsborough Assistant Town Manager and Planning Director Margaret Hauth. “His first thought as he approached a challenging job was always about safety for the public. We all wish him rest and success as he opens a new chapter of his life.”

“One pleasure that has come out of [the COVID-19 pandemic] is I’ve gotten to work with Jerry more closely working on the Town Incident Policy Team together here in his last months with us,” said Hillsborough Mayor Jenn Weaver when speaking with 97.9 The Hill’s Aaron Keck. “We’re so appreciative of his service. He is just a really good human and I know he’s going to enjoy his well-deserved retirement.”

According to the release, Hillsborough’s town government is considering several options for Wagner’s long-term replacement to handle fire inspections and building plan reviews, including potentially contracting with Orange County for the services. Through the end of 2020, however, the town says part-time fire inspector David Cates will conduct fire inspections with assistance from the county.

Wagner said in the release he plans to use retirement to teach at a community college and enjoy downtime with his wife and family on a lake, at the ocean or in the mountains.

Photo via the Town of Hillsborough.

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