BOWDOINHAM

Arthur Frizzle will take over as Bowdoinham’s newest fire chief April 1 as longtime fire chief Jack Tourtelotte’s retirement goes into effect.

Selectmen voted unanimously Tuesday to endorse Frizzle, who was the unanimous top pick of the interview committee formed by Town Manager William Post, which interviewed all four internal applicants.

Brian Hobart, chairman of the Board of Selectmen, said Tuesday he was pleased to see “so much talent in the four applicants.”

“We really have some very capable people in the fire department,” he said.

Tourtelotte served on the fire department for 57 years; 14 years as chief before deciding it was time to retire.

Frizzle, 44, grew up in Bowdoinham and has volunteered for the fire department since he joined in 1981 as a junior firefighter.

His father, Allan Frizzle, joined the department in 1949 and served as the town’s chief for 35 years before retiring in 1999 when Tourtelotte took over.

Frizzle and his brother, Bob, currently are deputy chiefs, so as of April 1, “You will have Frizzle chief and a Frizzle deputy chief,” Arthur Frizzle said.

Holding a rank over a sibling is not a new family dynamic; his sister, Sonia Moeller, works as his supervisor at Brunswick Police Department, where he will remain a dispatcher.

Public safety has dominated Arthur Frizzle’s career path.

He was a police officer in town back when Bowdoinham had a small police department. He then became a dispatcher for Topsham Police Department and then for Brunswick Police Department in 1995 where he works now.

Having the perspective of a police officer and dispatcher “definitely makes a difference” in how you approach a situation, he said, because you really see the whole picture and know what to expect.

Having been a dispatcher for 22 years now, just when you think you’ve seen it all, “there’s always something different.”

He will continue to work as a dispatcher so the town will have to find a way to accommodate that, Frizzle said, especially during the day when there are limited personnel to respond to fires.

He joined the Bowdoinham Fire Department in 1981, moving up the ranks to captain and deputy chief.

“It’s a big responsibility to take on. Chief Tourtelotte approached me and said he was thinking of retiring and thought I should at least apply for the position.

With two chiefs in Bowdoinham in the last 50 years, Frizzle said, “You’ve kind of got big shoes to fill because they’ve obviously been doing something right. So going and saying your going to change things isn’t necessarily what you want; but at the same time in 50 years, everything’s changed so you’ve got to define and redefine the roles and bring (the department) up to date.”

Frizzle said he wants to take steps to ensure the department is meeting state mandates — such as purchasing software allowing it to keep better track of records, attendance, maintenance and inventory.

He found the unanimous vote to appoint him Tuesday reassuring, and said he is grateful for the show of support:

“I hopefully will be able to serve them and the town of Bowdoinham, and provide them what they’re expecting.”

As April 1 approaches, Frizzle said Tourtelotte has been passing on as much information and wisdom as he can.

With 23 members — four officers, four captains, two deputies and a chief — the department meets every Monday night except holidays.

“You do it for the pride for what you do,” Frizzle said. “You’re obviously helping people everyday, some of them at their very worst times and you’re doing your best.

“There’s nothing like it. The dedication to show up at 3 o’clock in the morning during a snow storm for somebody that went off the road, instead of sitting at home in a nice warm bed, it’s amazing the group of people you deal with. That in and of itself is worth the effort.”

There will be an informal sendoff for Tourtelotte 5 to 8 p.m. April 1 at the fire station.