Fire Chief

Socket.dev; Galveston (TX); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Texas International Terminals (TXIT) seeks a Fire Chief to lead industrial firefighting and emergency response across refinery, terminal, pipeline, and marine operations. You will serve as the senior technical fire response expert and report to the Emergency Response Manager.

This role requires 15+ years in fire service, substantial refinery or high‑hazard firefighting experience, and proven leadership. Firefighter I & II certification and ICS/NIMS training are essential.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of progressive fire service/emergency response experience.
• Significant refinery, petrochemical, chemical, terminal, or other high-hazard industrial firefighting experience.
• Demonstrated experience leading industrial fire brigades, ERT or responding to major industrial fire events.
• Strong experience with fireground tactics and Incident Command.
• Firefighter I & II certification or equivalent.
• ICS/NIMS training, including advanced IC courses appropriate for the position.
• Strong leadership, communication, and crisis-management skills.

Responsibilities

• Serve as the senior technical fire response expert for refinery and terminal operations.
• Develop and maintain site specific fire response strategies and tactics for high-hazard operations.
• Provide technical and tactical direction during refinery, terminal, pipeline, and marine fire emergencies.
• Identify resources required for credible worst-case refinery and terminal fire scenarios.
• Coordinate fire response personnel and equipment.
• Maintain readiness to respond to significant emergency events and provide senior fire expertise during off hours as required.

Skills

Leadership

Fire service

Crisis management

Communication

Education

Firefighter I & II certification

ICS/NIMS training

Job description

About TXIT:

Texas International Terminals (TXIT) is a premier multimodal terminal and logistics operator strategically positioned at the intersection of rail, storage, and deep-water marine access along the Texas Gulf Coast. We specialize in efficiently moving bulk, breakbulk, and liquid commodities from inland rail networks directly to blue-water vessels, enabling our customers to access global markets with speed, reliability, and scale.

TXIT’s operations support a wide range of industries, including energy, agriculture, industrial materials, and bulk commodities. Our terminals are equipped with robust rail capacity, modern material handling systems, storage solutions, and marine infrastructure capable of accommodating high-throughput operations and demanding customer requirements. Safety, reliability, and environmental stewardship are foundational to how we operate, and our teams are experienced in navigating complex regulatory environments while maintaining best-in-class operational standards.

Fire Chief – Industrial Firefighting & Emergency Response

PURPOSE

The Fire Chief provides senior technical and operational leadership for the Company's industrial firefighting and fire-response capabilities across refinery, terminal, pipeline, and marine operations.

The position supports the Emergency Response Manager (ERM) in maintaining a highly capable emergency response organization and serves as the Company's subject matter expert for refinery/terminal firefighting, fire suppression tactics, fire protection systems, emergency response team (ERT) readiness, training, pre-incident planning, exercises, and mutual aid.

The Fire Chief complements the ERM by providing the specialized expertise in refinery and terminal fire scenarios, including hydrocarbon fires, tank fires, pump and process-unit fires, vapor releases, flammable-liquid incidents, firewater and foam systems, exposure protection, defensive and offensive suppression tactics, and large-scale industrial emergencies.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES & ACCOUNTABILITIES

Industrial Firefighting & Incident Response

• Serve as the senior technical fire response expert for refinery and terminal operations.
• Develop and maintain site specific fire response strategies and tactics for high-hazard operations.
• Provide technical and tactical direction during refinery, terminal, pipeline, and marine fire emergencies.
• Evaluate fire conditions, process hazards, firewater availability, foam requirements, exposure risks, access, weather conditions, and potential escalation.
• Provide the Incident Commander with timely technical recommendations regarding fire suppression, containment, exposure protection, evacuation, resource requirements, and escalation.
• Lead or direct fire response operations within the Incident Command System when assigned.
• Maintain readiness to respond to significant emergency events and provide senior fire expertise during off hours as required.

Fire Protection & Pre-Incident Planning

• Provide technical expertise regarding firewater, foam, hydrants, monitors, fire pumps, fixed suppression systems, apparatus, and other fire protection resources.
• Develop and maintain fire specific pre-incident plans for tanks, refinery, process areas, loading facilities, docks, pipelines, and other high-hazard areas.
• Identify deficiencies affecting fire response capability, recommend corrective actions and drive them to completion.

Training & Exercises

• Develop and maintain the technical content of the Company’s industrial firefighting, ERT training program in coordination with the ERM.
• Conduct fire drills, tabletop exercises, and full-scale emergency exercises.
• Develop realistic refinery fire scenarios and evaluate response performance.
• Maintain ERT competency and readiness.
• Incident Command and tactical command training.
• Mutual-aid exercises.

Additionally,

• Evaluate training and exercise performance and recommend improvements to personnel competency, equipment, procedures, and response tactics.
• Develop realistic refinery and petrochemical fire scenarios for emergency exercises and preparedness planning.
• Participate in incident critiques, after-action reviews, and emergency response investigations. Identify lessons learned and recommend improvements to fire response tactics, training, equipment, procedures, and fire protection capabilities.

Mutual Aid & Fire Department Coordination

Establish and maintain strong technical working relationships with local fire departments, industrial fire organizations, mutual-aid partners, and specialized firefighting resources.

The Fire Chief will:

• Evaluate mutual aid capabilities and limitations.
• Identify resources required for credible worst-case refinery and terminal fire scenarios.
• Coordinate technical fire planning with external fire departments.
• Participate in joint drills and exercises.
• Familiarize mutual aid partners with site hazards, access, firewater systems, staging areas, and tactical considerations.
• Serve as the Company’s primary technical fire liaison during fire service coordination.
• The ERM retains overall accountability for external emergency response relationships and program coordination.

Continuous Improvement

• Participate in fire related incident investigations and after-action reviews.
• Identify lessons learned and recommend improvements to tactics, training, equipment, procedures, and fire protection capabilities.
• Evaluate drill and incident performance.
• Identify deficiencies in equipment, tactics, training, procedures, and fire protection systems.
• Benchmark the company's industrial firefighting program against leading refinery/terminal practices.

Incident Command & Emergency Response

• The Fire Chief shall operate within the Company’s Incident Command System and support the ERM during emergency events. The Fire Chief will:
• Serve as the fire tactical/technical lead during significant incidents.
• Assume Fire Branch, Fire Group, or other tactical command responsibilities when assigned.
• Provide the Incident Commander with fire behavior, suppression, resource, and escalation assessments.
• Coordinate fire response personnel and equipment.
• Establish and communicate fireground tactical objectives.
• Request additional firefighting or mutual aid resources when necessary.
• Maintain situational awareness of changing fire conditions and potential escalation.
• Participate in command briefings and operational updates.

QUALIFICATIONS

Required:

• 15+ years of progressive fire service/emergency response experience.
• Significant refinery, petrochemical, chemical, terminal, or other high-hazard industrial firefighting experience.
• Demonstrated experience leading industrial fire brigades, ERT or responding to major industrial fire events.
• Strong experience with fireground tactics and Incident Command.
• Firefighter I & II certification or equivalent.
• ICS/NIMS training, including advanced IC courses appropriate for the position.
• Strong knowledge of industrial fire protection, firewater, foam, and suppression systems.
• Experience developing firefighting training, drills, and exercises.
• Experience working with municipal and/or industrial mutual-aid organizations.
• Strong leadership, communication, and crisis-management skills.

Preferred:

• Previous Industrial Fire Chief, Assistant Fire Chief, or equivalent experience.
• Fire Officer and/or Fire Instructor certification. HAZMAT Technician certification.
• Extensive tank-fire, hydrocarbon-fire, and refinery/process unit firefighting experience.
• Advanced industrial firefighting training through TEEX or equivalent.