Longtime Saco firefighter chosen as new Lebanon chief

Steven S. Merrill (Courtesy photo)

LEBANON, Maine - An Old Orchard Beach man and longtime Saco firefighter has been chosen as chief of Lebanon Fire and EMS.

Steven S. Merrill, who has been in the emergency services field for some 35 years, was voted into his position during an executive session by selectmen on Sunday and will be sworn in at Thursday's selectmen's meeting..

Merrill will take over official duties on Friday.

Merrill started in the Fire and EMS field in 1982 in Kennebunkport, where his father had volunteered and had reached the rank of assistant chief.

In 1985, Merrill was hired by the city of Saco, beginning his career as a professional firefighter.
In 1997 Merrill moved away from town, but continued working for other small communities as a per diem Fire and EMS, a page on Lebanon's Fire and EMS Facebook page noted.
In 2014, he switched fields and took a position at Maine Medical Center as a communication technician.

However, after a year there, he longed to return to the Fire and EMS field, according to the Facebook post, and enrolled at Southern Maine Community College for Paramedicine, earning his associate's degree in August.
While in college, Merrill continued working per diem for Wells EMS. He also has been attending classes at Southern Maine Community College where he will complete a degree in Fire Sciences at the end of the current semester.
Merrill is also a founding member of the Patriot Riders, who organize projects helping the less fortunate.

Merrill will take over for interim chief Dan Mathews, who filled the position after the unexpected November resignation of former chief Dan Meehan. Meehan's tenure as chief began in early 2015.