When former fire Chief Phil Foley got hurt on the job, veteran firefighter Jerry Wiltfang was handed the chief’s responsibilities.
He had been with the agency for less than a month as an assistant fire chief. But he had more than 30 years of service with the Rockford Fire Department and also had served as the emergency operations director for the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office.
On Monday, aldermen gave him a unanimous 10-0 vote of confidence by authorizing Mayor Greg Jury’s appointment of Wiltfang as full-time chief. Foley retired Aug. 20. after 53 years on the job.
Since February, Wiltfang has been acting fire chief, managing the volunteer fire department of about 35 active firefighters and an annual budget of about $750,000. His salary will be $86,000 a year.