David Nelson, who has more than 28 years of experience in firefighting and ambulance service, was confirmed Monday night as Whitehall Township’s fire chief.

The board of commissioners approved the hire during its regular meeting. Nelson will be administered the oath of office Sept. 19, his first official day in taking the command of the township’s five stations and volunteer personnel.

“The decision was a difficult one in that many of the candidates had exemplary resumes and work history,” Whitehall Township Mayor Edward D. Hozza Jr. said.

Nelson, 45, fills the vacancy for a full-time fire chief after the March 30 death of Robert L. Benner, who served in that capacity for three decades.

Hozza said Nelson has the “dubious honor of being both ‘an insider,’ having served with the Whitehall Township Volunteer Fire Department Station 39 (Egypt) and an ‘outsider,’ having served with the Myrtle Beach Fire Service for many years.”

Prior to coming to Whitehall, Nelson was fire chief in Emmaus for nearly a year, heading the borough’s emergency services.

Prior to his post in Emmaus, Nelson spent 11 years as a lieutenant for the Horry County, South Carolina, fire department in Myrtle Beach, S.C. The department covers 1,137 square miles and has 300-plus career firefighters.

“Chief Nelson was in command of one of 40 stations in the county,” Hozza said.

Mentioning Nelson had an impressive resume as lieutenant, Hozza said he also served as a paramedic for the City of Allentown, volunteer firefighter for Whitehall Township, vice president of the Gretna Volunteer Fire Department fire board and rescue captain for Crescent Volunteer Fire Department.

He is a U.S. Army veteran, having served as an infantry team leader for the 101st Airborne.

Nelson and his wife, Dina, have two children, Sophia and Samuel.