By Terry Karkos,Staff Writer

ROXBURY – A meeting Monday night about fire protection in Roxbury degenerated into shouting matches over other matters.

When the meeting adjourned 60 minutes later, there was some consensus that the town did still have a fire department, but its volunteers aren’t trained to enter burning buildings to fight fires.

Neither have they had shots to protect them from blood-borne pathogens should they respond to accidents.

Additionally, Roxbury residents learned that the town’s assistant fire chief, Wayne Hamel, had resigned, and, that first-year Selectman Alan Hodgkins had also resigned over conflicts.

They also learned that one firefighter is a registered sex offender.

Moderator Bob Worthley of Roxbury said residents asked to meet with Mexico and Roxbury fire chiefs to determine what is to be done about fire protection.

Since 1994, Roxbury has had a mutual-aid pact with Mexico, Byron and Andover. Mexico and Byron fire departments respond automatically on any structure fire call in Roxbury, but Andover doesn’t. It hasn’t been instructed to do so yet.

Town Clerk Tina Howard, a former Roxbury selectman, said Hamel had resigned, and that she learned the town doesn’t have any volunteers left. Others disagreed.

“We really don’t have a volunteer fire department, so what does that mean for fire protection?” she asked.

Without naming names, resident Maurice Canwell attributed the bickering and fire department problems to a selectman who wrote a letter about a Roxbury firefighter, who is a convicted and registered sex offender.

Canwell worked 40 years with Roxbury’s fire department as its assistant chief, then chief, and town fire warden. He said he retired 15 years ago, blaming selectmen for not backing the department.

“Is it a personal problem or a legal problem?” Canwell asked amidst the bickering.

First-year Selectman Douten “Dan” Thomas said it was a department problem.

After Mexico fire Chief Gary Wentzell read the 1994 mutual-aid pact, Thomas asked him to re-read the negligence clause.

Thomas said he was worried about liability issues because fire Chief Gordon Touchette allegedly knew the department had a registered sex offender working as a volunteer firefighter.

Earlier, Howard said the unnamed firefighter had worked for the department for two decades, “and we never had an issue with him. Leave it alone.”

She then accused Thomas of having a vendetta against Touchette and asked Thomas to resign. Thomas denied he had any vendetta.

Hodgkins then became irate and yelled at Thomas, accusing him of “running this town into the ground.”

The matters may get resolved in October when Mexico selectmen meet to consider ending the mutual-aid pact due to lack of support from Roxbury, and when Roxbury selectmen meet next month.