MORRISBURG – The Office of the fire Marshal recently advised the Municipality of South Dundas that they are “required to have an interim or acting fire chief until a replacement is found.”
To that end, South Dundas council appointed its clerk Crystal LeBrun as Acting Fire Chief at Monday’s regular meeting (March 27).
South Dundas fire chief Cameron Morehouse has been on personal leave for about six months. No update was given concerning the status of Morehouse’s leave; however there is a job opportunity posted on the municipality’s website.
The report to council from chief administrative officer Shannon Geraghty says that LeBrun being named acting fire chief will allow fire plans, fire inspections, firework sign offs, and alcohol permits to proceed without delays.
It also says that the acting fire chief will delegate authority to the assistant coordinator of fire and emergency services to sign off on outstanding items. Chris Paulino is the assistant coordinator of fire and emergency services for South Dundas.
In the meantime, South Dundas is looking to hire a director of fire and emergency services, which is the job title held by the fire chief.
While council did not discuss this job posting publicly, the position advertised says that it is a temporary/full time (1 year contract) with a salary range of $105,275-$114,815. It has the same April 3 application deadline as the open CAO job posting.
Although temporarily paused at this time, South Dundas Fire and Emergency Services has been undergoing a workplace restorative review, involving all three of its stations, initiated in December 2022.