Terry Knowles

Terry Knowles has been selected as the new fire chief for Chattanooga. Knowles has served as the department’s assistant chief of special operations since 2022 and will replace retiring Chief Phil Hyman, who stepped down in July. Knowles joined the Chattanooga Fire Department in 2005, serving as a lieutenant, captain, battalion chief, and an urban search and rescue instruction. A member of the Chattanooga Fire Fighters Association Local 820 who previously served as president of the Chattanooga Fire and Police Pension Fund, Knowles served in the U.S. Navy before going to work for the Catoosa County Sheriff’s Department in 1994. He attended both Dalton State College and the University of Tennessee Chattanooga.