There is a new fire chief in town. David Scheurer (pronounced shur-er) got unanimous approval from the Demorest City Council in a special meeting Wednesday night.
City Manager Mark Musselwhite recommended the appointment of Scheure as the new Demorest Fire Chief.
Scheurer’s background
Scheurer currently holds the rank of Battalion Chief with the Jasper County Fire Department in South Carolina, just north of Savannah. He is assigned as the County Fire Marshal overseeing Code Enforcement officers and Fire Inspectors for the county daily.
Scheuer moved to the Atlanta area in 1995 and worked for a security company for the Olympics. From there, Schuerer moved to Forsyth County and according to Linkedin, he became a firefighter for the Forsyth County Fire Department in 1996 until 2012, where he obtained the rank of Fire Lieutenant.
Letter of recommendation
Musselwhite announced that he had received a letter of recommendation for Scheurer from State Representative Lauren McDonald who represents the 26th District (Cumming). McDonald and Scheurer worked together as firefighters years ago at Forsyth County.
Before the appointment, Musselwhite stated that it had been 86 days since Assistant Chief Palmer took over operations of the fire department. Musselwhite told the council that he and Palmer had several conversations this week. “I will tell you I will be going outside of our current roster to recommend to the mayor and council to appoint a new fire chief,” Musselwhite stated.
Mayor’s welcome
After the appointment, Mayor Jerry Harkness addressed Scheurer stating, “Dave, we welcome you to the city and we look forward to having you here in person.”
“I look forward to coming and serving your citizens and becoming a part of your community. It will be nice to be back at home,” Scheurer responded.
Scheurer not only lived in north Georgia but his wife is from Cumming, and they have family in White and Habersham Counties. Musselwhite acknowledged that this is somewhat of a coming home for Scheurer.
Transition
Since Scheurer currently lives in South Carolina, his transition into the position will be delayed while he sells his house and makes the move to the area. His earliest start date will be February 20 and his latest start date will be March 11.
After the meeting, Musselwhite explained why he decided to recommend an applicant from outside the city for Fire Chief. “I did that because I looked at all the resumes and all the information and I looked at where I thought the fire department was today and I felt like bringing in some new blood.”
Musselwhite admits that hiring outside can be risky. “It can be a risky factor. I evaluated the risk factors and the rewards and I saw that as what was necessary for this roster (department).”
