The Damariscotta Board of Selectmen appointed veteran firefighter and fire department officer John Roberts fire chief by a 3-0 vote at its Jan. 16 meeting.
The members of the Damariscotta Fire Department and the nonprofit Massasoit Engine Company elected Roberts to succeed Fire Chief Neil Genthner Jan. 8. The Damariscotta town charter requires the selectmen to appoint the chief.
Damariscotta Board of Selectmen Chairman David Atwater was absent and Vice Chairman Josh Pinkham, who serves as second assistant fire chief, abstained from the vote.
Roberts, an electrical engineer, has been a Damariscotta firefighter since joining the department in 1999 at the age of 18.