The annual Chilmark Backyard Bash was celebrated with poignancy, as retiring fire chief David Norton took the stage to formally pass the torch to Jeremy Bradshaw.
Chilmark selectmen voted unanimously on Tuesday to name Jeremy Bradshaw as the new town fire chief. Mr. Bradshaw will begin work August 1.
Part of the Menemsha Market was heavily damaged in a fire Thursday night likely sparked by a utility pole that went over in heavy winds, Chilmark assistant fire chief Timothy Carroll said.
A home under construction on Middle Road in Chilmark caught fire early Wednesday morning, engulfing the property in flames for nearly two hours and prompting an all-out mutual aid response from every Island fire department.
The only fire at the Chilmark volunteer firefighters’ Backyard Bash Wednesday was on the grill, where burger patties and corn on the cob were laid out for hundreds.
Chilmark’s long search for a suitable spot to build a new town fire station could well end up back where it began: where the town hall and firehouse sit side by side.