Fort Walton Beach Fire Chief Jeremy Morgan is retiring after 25 years with the department and Deputy Fire Chief Thearon Shipman has been selected to be the city’s new fire chief.
Chief Morgan started his career at the Fort Walton Beach Fire Department shortly after graduating from the fire academy at Pensacola Junior College in 1999. He worked his way up the “fire ladder,” with promotions to Driver/Engineer in 2008, Captain in 2012, Battalion Chief in 2017, and Deputy Fire Chief in 2021.
In his time with the City, Chief Morgan has earned multiple fire science degrees as well as a bachelor’s degree in emergency management. He has served in Okaloosa County’s Special Operations Unit, which included rope-based rescue and hazmat response teams, and he has been paramedic certified since 2003.
In November 2022 he was appointed Fire Chief, and under his leadership, the department has flourished despite the challenges it faced. While the city’s population has remained constant, we’ve seen a large increase in the number of tourists visiting our community and fire service calls have increased more than 30 percent over the past few years.
Fire in and of itself is sometimes scary, but from the ashes sprouts opportunity.
During Chief Morgan’s tenure, he created an atmosphere of opportunity- those willing to work and earn promotions have been rewarded. And while his time with the city has come to an end, Chief Morgan has successfully groomed his replacement.
For the first time in City history, the outgoing Chief will be able to directly hand off the responsibilities of Fire Chief to his replacement, who is being promoted from within the ranks of the department.
The City is excited to announce Deputy Chief Thearon Shipman will officially become Fire Chief effective July 2, 2025.
Deputy Chief Shipman is a veteran of the Fort Walton Beach Fire Department with more than 22 years of firefighting service. He will also be the first African American to serve as fire chief of a civilian fire department in Okaloosa County.
Shipman began his career with the department in August 2002 and was promoted to Engineer in 2008, where he quickly became known as one of the best engineers on the team.
Shipman’s dedication and leadership earned him a promotion to Captain in 2015, where he made a significant impact on firefighter training and development. Shipman also served as the department’s EMS coordinator, working closely with county EMS to ensure all firefighters were up to date on the latest protocols and training. Additionally, he became an American Heart Association instructor, teaching CPR, Advanced Cardiac Life Support, and Pediatric Advanced Life Support.
In 2024, Shipman was promoted to Battalion Chief, where he oversaw A-shift, and in February 2025 he was promoted to Deputy Fire Chief.
A change of command ceremony has been scheduled for 4 p.m. Friday, July 18, 2025 at the Fort Walton Beach Fire Station 6 on Hollywood Boulevard.
