History was in the making as members of the Paoli Fire Company elected Andrea Testa as the Fire Chief for Station 3, making her the first woman to hold the position of Fire Chief in Chester County.

The vote to elect key leadership positions within the organization, including Fire Chief, was held on May 11th amid an unusually high turnout.

“I am humbled by the support and honored to lead Paoli Fire Company into the next chapter of its proud history of providing emergency services to our community,” said Testa. “In addition, I would like to thank all of the members of the company for their continued participation and commitment. Moreover, I would like to thank Chief Dutter for his leadership and dedication during his tenure as Chief.”

Testa, who has served as an Assistant Chief at PFC for the last decade, has an extensive background in emergency services. During her career, she has spent over a quarter of a century serving as a firefighter/emergency medical technician in both Kimberton and Paoli Fire Companies.

Holder of a degree in Fire Science Technology and a second degree in Emergency Management & Planning, Testa is also employed as the full-time Chief Fire Marshal for the West Goshen Township where she is responsible for code enforcement/emergency management as well as fire incident investigation.

Check out previous VISTA Today coverage of Paoli here.