Gray appointed interim Sangerville fire chief after resignation
SANGERVILLE — Following the acceptance of the resignation of Fire Chief Matt Blockler on July 6, Orman Gray, a former assistant chief, has been appointed interim chief.
This move came after a meeting with Deputy Chief Travis Labree and other senior members of the fire department, Town Manager Brian Mullis wrote in a July 9 post on the town Facebook page.
“I would like to publicly thank Orman for stepping up and taking on this responsibility for us,” Mullis wrote.
“This was a decision Matt made entirely on his own for personal reasons,” Mullis wrote about Blockler, who had been in the position for three years. “Being fire chief is a tremendous amount of responsibility 24 hours a day, seven days a week without a break and a huge time commitment for very little pay. Matt is a very good firefighter and EMT and is planning to continue in those roles for the fire department.
“I want to thank Matt for all his hard work and the great job he did leading the department and for the Town of Sangerville. He was successful in writing several grants for equipment, was very dedicated to maintaining the training of his crew and was instrumental in the fire department becoming a licensed EMS first responder service. His leadership will be missed.”
“Although leading the department gave me great joy, I felt the expectations far exceeded reality in today’s world,” Blockler wrote in a post on his Facebook page. “This year marks 20 years of fire and EMS service in this county. There are many things I will miss and many I will not. I am hoping to continue my service along other avenues.”
Gray’s appointment prompted a change in fire truck strategy for a tanker truck. A 1993 vehicle is currently off the road due to a failed inspection.
“As much as we all respect Matt’s original plan and see the long-term value of it for the Town of Sangerville, we do not feel we can ask taxpayers to make that degree of commitment at this time,” Mullis said about the pursuit of a brand new vehicle. “For now, purchasing a new fire truck is off the table. Our plan is to get some new estimates on repairing the current truck. If we learn that we can bring that truck into safe operating condition so that it will accept a commercial vehicle inspection sticker for a reasonable price, we will make the repairs and return it to service. If we cannot, we will look into purchasing a used truck that will meet our needs.”
A public hearing on truck options scheduled for Tuesday, July 14 has been canceled. An open house at the fire station has been postponed until the fall.
The Select Board will discuss the matter Wednesday, July 15.