City of Poway logoThe City of Poway is proud to announce the appointment of Jeff Chumbley to fire chief effective April 4. Chumbley was most recently a division chief for the Valley Center Fire Protection District, but he began his fire service career with the Poway Fire Department in 1997.

Poway Jeff Chumbley

“The City of Poway helped build my foundation in the fire service and I was proud to serve in such an amazing community,” said Chumbley. “To be given the opportunity to return home is humbling and I am honored to serve once again in Poway and especially grateful to serve the men and women of the Poway Fire Department.”

Chumbley served as a firefighter/paramedic with Poway before joining the Carlsbad Fire Department in 2004. He promoted to battalion chief in May 2014 and was the initial incident commander and operations chief during the 2014 Poinsettia Fire in Carlsbad.

“Jeff’s management experience with outstanding fire agencies combined with his connection to our fire department is an incredible win for our community,” said City Manager Chris Hazeltine. “He understands what makes our organization great but can also draw on his outside experience to ensure we are serving our residents in the best possible way.”

Chumbley has a bachelor’s degree in fire science administration from Waldorf University in Iowa. His training credentials include chief officer certification, fire instruction 1 certification, SWAT academy, strike team leader and public information officer.

Since 1961, members of the Poway Fire Department have served the residents, businesses, and visitors of the “City in the Country” with a tradition of compassion, professionalism, and innovation. Today, the department continues the tradition of service excellence as an all-hazards, all-risk public safety organization responding to over 5,000 calls for service each year. The Poway Fire Department is designated “Class 1” by the Insurance Services Organization’s Public Protection Classification program for providing exemplary fire protection.