After serving as Acting Chief for more than a year and a half, Mike Deveau will take the reins as Chief of the Yarmouth Fire Department
Thursday, April 15th, 2021 - Yarmouth, N.S. – The Town of Yarmouth is pleased to announce the hiring of Mike Deveau as Fire Chief for the Yarmouth Fire Department. The top position had remained open since the retirement of Chief John Verrall in 2019. After filling in as Acting Chief since Verrall’s departure, Deveau has decided to make the leap to full-time Chief.
When asked about his feelings on accepting the position, Deveau expressed excitement and sees it as a chance to continue important work he had already begun in his interim role.
“This fire department has been my passion for many years,” said Deveau. “Taking the job as Chief is a wonderful opportunity to continue to look after the incredible professional volunteer and career staff we have within the town.”
While Deveau has already made his mark on the department over his long fire career and as Acting Chief, he plans to waste little time making big improvements, especially when it comes to recruiting new volunteers.
“In the short term my goal is to ensure the sustainability of our fire service well into the future. I hope to provide continuous training for my volunteer and career staff. The community will also see a big push in coming weeks and months with respect to volunteer recruitment. We need more people to join our ranks so we can continue to keep Yarmouth safe with our word-class fire service.”
“My long-term plan will be to keep our foot on the gas with recruitment and training but also focus on upgrades and replacement of apparatus and equipment as they become obsolete,” added Deveau. “I hope to also build a stronger effort in the area of community outreach.”
“Mike has done a bang-up job as Acting Chief so council is thrilled that he has accepted the role full-time,” said Mayor Pam Mood. “Our businesses and residents have always been well served and protected by the Yarmouth Fire Department, and now we have a Chief who is fully invested in building the service to be even better.”
“I am glad we were able to recruit Mike for this role full time,” said Town of Yarmouth CAO Jeff Gushue. “Mike has served the community in our fire Department for nearly two decades, and has done an outstanding job leading the department through the transition from Chief Verrall’s retirement until now. I have full confidence in his leadership and vision for the fire service.”
Deveau’s fire career began in 2004 as a volunteer. Within a few years of service, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant. Approximately two years later he became a Captain, then moved on to become Assistant Deputy Chief and then Deputy Chief. Now serving in the position as Chief, he has successfully served in every rank with the department. Deveau has also been in leader when it comes to training, having been heavily involved in training of both volunteers and career staff for many years.
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