Chief Peter J. Finley, Jr. was appointed Chief of Department on May 25, 2003 after serving as the acting Fire Chief since December 2001. He is a 28 year veteran of the fire and emergency services who began his career as a volunteer Firefighter with Company #1 of the Vineland Fire Department in January 1978. In January 1980, he was appointed as a career Firefighter with the Fairfax County Virginia Fire and Rescue Department, attaining the rank of Firefighter II (Driver/Operator). After a brief tenure with the New Jersey Division of Fire Safety, he was appointed a career Firefighter with the Vineland Fire Department in June 1986. He was promoted to Fire Prevention Specialist in 1995, Captain in 1997, and Deputy Chief in 2000.

In addition to his firefighting and EMS duties, during the course of his career Chief Finley has served as the Driver/Operator of a heavy rescue company, served on the Hazardous Materials Response Team in 2 jurisdictions and served as a Fire Instructor and Fire Inspector. As an officer, prior to assuming his current responsibility, he has served as the Department's Executive Officer, as a Platoon Commander, and, as Commander of the Fire Prevention Division.

Chief Finley served as the EMS/Rescue Chief for the Vineland Rescue Squad, the predecessor of Vineland Emergency Medical Service from July 1986, until the current dedicated EMS service was initiated in January 1990.

Chief Finley possesses an Associates Degree in Fire Technology from Atlantic Community College, and, a Bachelors Degree in Fire Administration from the University of Maryland. He is a 2003 graduate of the National Fire Academy's Executive Fire Officer Program. In 2002, he was awarded a prestigious Outstanding Research Award from the National Fire Academy for his applied research paper titled, "Residential Fire Alarms: The Verification and Response Dilemma". This entire research paper can be downloaded at www.usfa.fema.gov/pdf/efop/tr_02pf.pdf.

Chief Finley possesses a New Jersey Incident Management Level II certification. He is also a New Jersey certified Hazardous Material On-Scene Incident Commander, Fire Official, Fire Instructor Level II and Emergency Medical Technician. In addition, he is nationally certified as a Fire Instructor III, Fire Inspector III, Fire Officer IV, Hazardous Material Technician, Specialist and Incident Commander, and, Incident Safety Officer - Fire Suppression. All of these certifications represent the highest level attainable.