Old Saybrook

“After an administrative and then criminal investigation of Old Saybrook Fire Marshal Donn Dobson, Mr. Dobson has agreed to resign his post with the Town of Old Saybrook,” said First Selectman Carl Fortuna, Jr.

Further comments with respect to the investigation are expected to be released later today by the Old Saybrook Police Department.

Dobson has worked full-time for the Town of Old Saybrook as the town’s fire marshal since 1998. Since March 2016, he also worked part-time as deputy fire marshal for the Town of Westbrook. At press time, there was no announced change in his professional relationship with the Town of Westbrook.

As town fire marshal, Dobson is responsible for reviewing construction plans to ensure they comply with fire and life safety codes, inspecting projects under construction, issuing blasting permits, investigating fires, and preparing investigation reports. He is also responsible for performing fire code compliance inspections of public facilities such as a schools, restaurants, hotels, movie theaters, hotels and inns, and similar spaces. The frequency for those routine inspections is set by the State Fire Marshal.

Dobson was first certified as a fire marshal in 1997 and in 1998, he joined the staff of the Town of Old Saybrook as town fire marshal. He has held several leadership posts in state-wide fire marshal organizations including serving in 2001 on the Board of Directors of the State Fire Marshals Association and in 2004, as an appointed member of the State’s Fire Prevention Code Advisory Committee. In November 2009, Dobson was elected president of the Connecticut chapter of the International Association of Arson Investigators.