The fire career of George Esbensen began with the Eden Prairie Fire Department in 1986 as a volunteer. During his tenure Esbensen has held the ranks of firefighter, lieutenant and assistant chief – operations.

In 2002 Esbensen was selected as the department’s first full-time Fire Chief. In addition to his duties as Fire Chief, he is the City’s Director of Emergency Preparedness. In that position Esbensen works closely with emergency preparedness coordinators within the Police, Fire and Public Works departments, as well as the City Manager. Esbensen has been president of the Hennepin County Fire Chiefs Association and is currently president of the Metro Chiefs Association. He earned associate of arts degrees in both fire protection and emergency management from Hennepin Technical College. 

During his private sector career, 1980-2002, Esbensen was mostly involved with start-up organizations in the high tech field of media replication and distribution. His roles ranged from senior sales executive to company president and founder. Esbensen is married with three grown children.