Chief Wheatley served as a Captain/Paramedic at the Lebanon Fire Department for eleven years before being appointed Fire Chief/Emergency Management Director in October 2022. Lebanon is a combination of Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department, serving a resident population of 15,000 and a daytime population of over 40,000.
He is also an Adjunct Staff Instructor at the Vermont Fire Standards and Training where he teaches students about Firefighter I/II and Fire Officer Program. He also taught hydraulics and water supply courses at Vermont Technical College.
Before his employment with Lebanon, Jim worked as a firefighter/paramedic for 4 ½ years at the Hartford, Vermont Fire Department. He received his Associate of Applied Science in Fire Science Degree from New Hampshire Community Technical College and his Bachelor of Science Degree from Columbia Southern University. Jim also graduated from the Executive Fire Officer Program at the National Fire Academy.