By Mark LaFlamme,Staff Writer

TURNER – The fate of Fire Chief Steven Fish remained unclear Friday after the Board of Selectmen was advised to reconsider its decision to oust him.

On advice from municipal lawyer Geoffrey Hole, the board voted to reverse its earlier decision not to reappoint Fish to the position he has held for a decade.

“They finally made a smart decision,” Turner firefighter Adam Dupile said as the meeting was closed.

Four selectmen present at the Friday afternoon meeting agreed to study the issue further and to vote again on the chief’s employment at a later date.

The decision came after a 90-minute executive session which board Chairman Lori Fish was not allowed to attend. Other selectmen asked her to leave the meeting because she is married to the chief.

“My lawyer told me I could go in there, their lawyer says I can’t,” Lori Fish said, sitting alone at the selectmen’s table while others talked behind a closed door. “I just think this is unfair. Steve’s worked hard for the department.”

Support for Chief Fish came in many forms on Friday. Firefighters who serve under his command lined the road around the town hall with picket signs. Fish’s son and daughter also held cardboard signs asking: “Why are you doing this to my dad?”

Dozens of people driving past the area honked, held out upraised thumbs or shouted support for the beleaguered chief.

“Our safety and our lives are in his hands,” said firefighter Kevin Nichols. “We’re completely comfortable working for him.”

Selectmen who voted Monday to end Fish’s reign as chief have not publicly provided a reason for that decision. None was offered at the Friday meeting.

“All they have said is that it’s time for a change,” said firefighter Rodney Guptill. “We don’t agree. If the firefighters under his command don’t think it’s time for a change, why should they?”

Fish, who has been out of town this week, was not at the Friday meeting. His crew members and his wife called him from the town hall parking lot with constant updates about the meeting.

“He’s very upset,” said Assistant Fire Chief Shane Arsenault after ending a call to the chief. “He loves what he does.”

Nobody at the town hall on Friday questioned Fish’s competence or his commitment to the job. Fish has been chief for more than 10 years and has worked for the Fire Department for three decades.

“He sacrifices a lot of his family life for the work,” Arsenault said. “He’s got a love for the community and a passion for being fire chief.”

Firefighters and other community members have accused the Board of Selectmen of “backdoor politics.” The meeting Monday during which selectmen voted to oust the chief was not announced in advance. Neither the chief nor any representatives from the Turner Volunteer Firefighters Association were in attendance. Lori Fish also was not at that meeting.

“They had no right to do it the way they did,” said fire Lt. Adam Dupile. “They made this decision when none of us were there.”

In open portions of the Friday meeting – less than five minutes in all – there was no talk of the chief specifically. All that was discussed was the earlier decision not to reappoint him and whether that vote should stand.

“In my judgment, they should reconsider the decision made Monday night,” said Hole, the attorney hired to provide counsel to the selectmen. “They should open the question back up so it can be studied further.”

The selectmen agreed, and the meeting was over. They could still vote to remove Fish as chief or they could reappoint him at a later session.

By the end of the meeting Friday, picket signs were soggy from a downpour. The men, women and children who showed up to support Fish were quietly optimistic that he would be reappointed.

The chief’s children, 9-year-old Dylan and 13-year-old Mikayla, said they hoped their father would keep his job, even though it often prevented him from attending their baseball or softball games.

“I’m just mad,” Mikayla said. “He’s missed a lot of our games to go out and fight fires. He’s done nothing but good stuff for people.”