Former Columbus fire chief becomes state fire marshal

March 4, 2020 John Clark

Joel Thacker. Photo courtesy of Indiana Department of Homeland Security

A former Columbus Fire Chief has been sworn in as the new state fire marshal.

Gov. Eric Holcomb announced today that he had chosen Plainfield Fire Chief Joel Thacker as the new fire marshall. Thacker served as the Columbus fire chief for about four months, from May to September in 2012 under former Mayor Kristen Brown.

According to the governor’s office, Thacker started as a career firefighter in Brownsburg and then Johnson County’s White River Township. He moved to the Plainfield department in 2015 and became chief there in 2017.

Thacker will begin his new position on April 6.

Long-time local firefighter Roger Johnson also served as the state fire marshal from 2005 to 2008.