Durham Reporter

Durham County issued the following announcement on Jul. 15. 

Durham County Government announces that Jason B. Shepherd is the new Chief Fire Marshal of the Office of Emergency Services (OES), Fire Marshal Division. Shepherd comes to Durham County with more than 27 years of experience and expertise in the field. His official start date was June 21, 2021. 

In this senior leadership role, Shepherd is responsible for leading and managing the daily operations of the County’s Fire Marshal Division. His responsibilities also include developing the community risk reduction program, strategic planning, plan review of life safety systems, fire prevention, fire inspections, and fire investigations.

“I’m excited that Jason has chosen the OES family as our Chief Fire Marshal. His vast experience leading fire prevention and risk reduction systems will be an invaluable asset to Durham County as we further develop and improve our community risk reduction model with our community stakeholders” said Durham County OES Director Jim Groves.

As leader of the Orange County (NC) Fire Marshal Division from June 2013-June 2021, Shepherd’s responsibilities included managing the fire prevention and education, fire inspection, and fire investigation programs there. Prior to his work with Orange County, Shepherd worked with Duke University Health System in the Occupational and Environmental Safety Office as their Fire Safety Specialist. He worked closely with design teams to provide technical expertise with the construction of many of Duke’s medical center facilities between 2005 and 2013.

Shepherd, 45, says he is excited about helping Durham County’s community risk reduction program grow.

“I’m incredibly blessed to have this opportunity to work in the division under the leadership of Director Groves and General Manager Jodi Miller,” Shepherd said. “Becoming part of the fabric that weaves the story of our community is an honor and I truly look forward to the great things we all can accomplish together. We’ve a lot of work ahead of us but I’m confident that the support networks are in place for us to successfully implement our vision of an effective community risk reduction program in Durham County.” 

He currently serves as the second Vice President of the North Carolina Fire Marshals’ Association and in this capacity, he is the NCFMA’s legislative representative working with the NC General Assembly to promote, educate, and support community-oriented fire service priorities. Additionally, Shepherd is a member of the North Carolina Building and Fire Code Ad-Hoc Committee tasked with developing the 2024 North Carolina Building and Fire Code.

Other experience on Shepherd’s resume includes being a firefighter/fire driver for the Town of Chapel Hill from 2001 to 2005, serving with the North Chatham Volunteer Fire Department from 1999-2001, and beginning his career in 1994 at the Faucette Township Volunteer Fire Department of Alamance County in 1994 as a volunteer, rising to the rank of Fire Chief by 2001.

He is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati with a degree in Fire & Safety Engineering. He also is a graduate of Guilford Technical Community College with a degree in Fire Protection Technology. Shepherd is a native of North Carolina and currently resides in West Hillsborough.

“Mr. Shepherd’s wealth of experience, strong leadership skills and familiarity with the community makes him the ideal person to lead Durham County’s Fire Marshal Division,” said Interim County Manager Claudia Hager. “We are very fortunate to have him join our organization.”

Shepherd is the proud father of Jacob C. Shepherd, a rising high school student.

Original source can be found here.