Last month, the Damariscotta Fire Dept. became the first fire department to renew the Maine Dept. of Labor’s Safety and Health Award for Public Employers.
Damariscotta Fire was the first employer in Lincoln County to receive the award in July 2010 and remains one of just 25 fire departments in the state to do so, said Damariscotta Fire Chief Neil Genthner.
“Hats off and kudos to the guys in the department,” Genthner said at the Dec. 19 meeting of the Damariscotta Board of Selectmen. “You guys should be really proud of them.”
Damariscotta Town Manager Matt Lutkus said the renewal “shows that we have a department that’s very concerned, not just about the safety of citizens, but the safety of volunteers.”
Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Supervisor Michael LaPlante congratulated Genthner in a Nov. 30 letter.
“Because of your efforts and the efforts of the employees of the Damariscotta Fire Dept., you have again received the highest honors for promoting and consistently improving conditions for the safety and health of employees,” LaPlante wrote.
The award exempts the department from regular DOL inspections.
Genthner, at the selectmen’s meeting, also addressed his recent announcement that he will step down as fire chief in January.
He said he has been a member of the department since he was 18 and an officer for more than 20 years, and he plans to remain a very active member of the department. His daughter is very active in sports, he said, and he wants to be able to go away during the summer.
The chief, who has already served twice, from 2001-05 and 2006-present, left the door open for a future return to the department’s top post.
“I’ve done my time, probably will do it again, but right now it’s time for somebody else to step up and take the reigns,” he said.
The members of the Damariscotta Fire Dept. and The Massasoit Engine Co. will elect a chief to succeed Genthner at their annual meeting Tues., Jan. 8, 2013.
