Goochland County Fire-Rescue promotes Breschel to lieutenant, Coughlin to captain

Goochland County Fire-Rescue’s latest promotions do more than change rank. They put two experienced officers in positions that help shape daily response, training and station leadership across a combination fire-EMS system that still depends on both career and volunteer personnel.

Chief Dillard E. Ferguson, Jr. announced on May 27 that Robert Cody Breschel would be promoted to lieutenant and Daniel M. “Danny” Coughlin would be promoted to captain, effective June 1, 2026. The department made the announcement on the same day it also promoted its 2026 Fire-Rescue Show, a reminder that Goochland’s public safety leadership is tied not only to internal advancement but also to recruitment, visibility and community outreach.

Breschel’s promotion reflects a steady climb through the fire service that began in Powhatan County, where he started volunteering at Fine Creek Volunteer Fire Department at age 16. He later earned firefighter and EMT certifications, served as a company officer there, and joined Goochland County Fire-Rescue in July 2021 as a career Firefighter/EMT. In Goochland, he rotated through Stations 2, 3 and 5 before being assigned to Manakin Station 1, where he served as a cleared ladder truck operator and senior firefighter. His training includes Fire Officer I, Fire Instructor, Driver Pump Operator, Aerial Operator, ICS 300, ICS 400 and IMT 0305, credentials that will matter in a county where aerial operations and multi-agency incident management are part of routine readiness.

Coughlin’s new captaincy carries even deeper institutional memory. He began volunteering with Manakin Company 1 in 2006, worked as an EMS provider with Lifeline Ambulance Service in Goochland, and became one of the county’s original ten career Fire-Rescue personnel when the county moved to career staffing in 2008. He has served at multiple stations and in the Training & Safety Division, was promoted to lieutenant in 2022, and has continued building advanced qualifications as an RSI medic, EMS Field Training Officer and Water Rescue Team member. As captain, that mix of field experience and mentorship should help with crew supervision, training continuity and specialty response.

The setting for that leadership matters. Station 5 in Goochland Courthouse, established in 1958 and renovated in 2024, is one of two county stations that house an aerial apparatus. Officers with Breschel’s ladder-truck background and Coughlin’s training and water rescue experience fit into an operational system that leans on specialized coverage as the county grows.

The promotions also fit a broader pattern inside the department. Goochland County Fire-Rescue has recently announced multiple officer promotions, including ones effective July 1, 2024, December 1, 2025 and January 16, 2026. That continuity is reinforced at the top by Ferguson’s own long career in county service, which began when he entered emergency services at age 16, continued as Goochland County’s first career Deputy Chief of EMS in 2004, and led to his appointment as chief in 2019.