The chief for the Travis County Emergency Services District No. 9 – also known as the Westlake Fire Department – is retiring after 25 years of service to the department.

West Lake Hills City Council honored Mike Elliott, who has served as chief for the last seven years, at the Feb. 27 meeting.

In 1993 after a neighbor's home burned down, Elliott asked then-chief Andy Adams what he could do to help. When he was told he could volunteer, he began his long association with the department, a staff report said.

Four years later he went from volunteer to full time lieutenant and would go on to become a captain and then assistant fire chief in 2000. He took over as chief in 2012.

According to the report, during his tenure with the department, Elliott was the recipient of the Fire Achievement Award, Firefighter of the Year and the Mike Elliott Leadership Award, which the department awards committee named in his honor.

Assistant Chief David Wilson will become the next chief of the Westlake Fire Department effective March 1.