Uxbridge hiring new fire chief

UXBRIDGE — The town of Uxbridge has begun advertising for the vacant fire chief’s position, which comes with an annual salary of up to $105,000.

The job posting went live on the town’s web page last week. Applications will be accepted until Feb. 8.

The town is looking to hire a successor to longtime fire chief, William T. Kessler, who left in December to take on a new role as fire chief in Mendon. Right now, the department is being led by interim Fire Chief Tom Dion and Deputy Fire Chief Steven Tancrell.

The fire chief in Uxbridge is a “strong chief” position, which is appointed by the town manager to oversee a full-service fire/rescue and EMS combination department made up of 13 career fire/EMS personnel and 19 on-call fire/EMS personnel of which 22 are EMTs or paramedics.

While a master’s degree is preferred, candidates for the position must have at least a bachelor’s degree in fire science, public administration or a related field, and 10 years of municipal fire/rescue experience including at least 5 years in a supervisory, command position as an officer in a fire department with significant administrative responsibilities.

Kessler, Uxbridge’s fire chief since 2012, left seven months after the departure of longtime Police Chief Jeffery A. Lourie, who left in January 2018 to take a similar position in Westborough. Lourie served as a detective lieutenant in Auburn before being appointed as Uxbridge’s chief of police in 2013. Lourie is widely credited with bolstering the department’s community policing program, expanding the department’s presence on social media and bringing in the department’s first K9.