DALTON, Ga. — Not long after he joined the Dalton Fire Department almost 20 years ago, Todd Pangle set his sights on being chief.

“I set goals for myself early on, and becoming chief was one of my goals,” he said. “I wanted to continue and to build on the strong tradition of professionalism in our department.”

The members of the Dalton Public Safety Commission (PSC) voted 5-0 Tuesday to name Pangle the fire department’s next chief when the PSC met at City Hall. The City Council, which will set Pangle’s salary, must still approve his selection.

Pangle will follow Chief Bruce Satterfield, who is retiring April 28 after 37 years with the department and eight years as chief. The department has a 2017 budget of $8.8 million with five stations and some 94 employees. The PSC oversees the fire department and the Dalton Police Department. 

Pangle has served with the fire department since 1997. He has been deputy chief since 2015 and served as a battalion chief from 2012 to 2015. He says he will spend the next month working with Satterfield on the transition.

“I’ll be doing what I’ve been doing for the past two years, working with Chief Satterfield and preparing myself for the awesome task that lies ahead,” he said.

Pangle said PSC members informed him ahead of the meeting that he would be named chief.

“It was a sense of relief that the process was over but also some nervous jitters when I thought about what lies ahead,” he said. “We have a great department and my desire is for it to keep moving forward, to keep getting better.”

The PSC named three finalists for the post two weeks ago. In addition to Pangle, they included Battalion Chief Christopher Cantrell and Lt. Damion Epps.

“All three of them were very well qualified, very impressive,” said PSC member Carlos Calderin. “But he (Pangle) had just a little bit more experience.”

PSC Chairman Bill Weaver said he also was impressed with the candidates.

“All three were very well qualified,” he said. “I think that speaks to the strength and professionalism of our department.”

Satterfield presented a chief’s badge to Pangle.

“He has a very good respect and rapport with the personnel of the department,” Satterfield said. “He brings a lot of experience to the table. He’s been a tremendous asset to me upstairs as the deputy chief since 2015, and he’s just a ton of help with his knowledge and so forth. I’m a thorough believer that he is the person to take the department further with my departure.”

City Council member Denise Wood, the council’s liaison to the PSC, said she expects the council members to vote on Pangle’s appointment when the council meets on Monday.

“We (the council members) very much agreed with searching within the department for the next fire chief,” she said. “And he is very well qualified.”

Pangle attended Chattanooga State and Dalton State College. He is married to Belinda Pangle and the couple has one child, son Preston, who is studying at the University of Alabama at Huntsville.