New Canaan board votes to reprimand fire chief over engine

Other Committee · Meeting of February 19, 2026

New Canaan board unanimously reprimands fire chief over uncertified engine. Meeting members moved into executive session almost immediately to discuss "a disciplinary action for town employee Albert Basset" before returning to vote in open session. The chair's motion cited the chief's "poor judgment in placing engine 4 in service when it was not certified," to be memorialized in a formal letter.

The board approved the reprimand unanimously by voice vote and adjourned within minutes, with no further public detail on the certification lapse or Basset's specific role.

In the full story:

• The complete report — 488 words

Source: the Other Committee meeting of February 19, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

The Full Article

NEW CANAAN — February 19, 2026 — A New Canaan municipal board voted unanimously Thursday to reprimand the town's fire chief for placing Engine 4 into service before it was certified, following a closed-door disciplinary session involving town employee Albert Basset.

The board took up the matter at the start of a brief virtual meeting, moving quickly into executive session to discuss what the chair described as "a disciplinary action for town employee Albert Basset." Members and staff rejoined the public portion of the meeting only to vote and adjourn.

The Full Story

The meeting opened with the Pledge of Allegiance before the chair announced the sole item of business: consideration of possible disciplinary action against Basset. Before any public discussion, the chair asked a person referred to only as Obby whether the board should move into executive session; Obby agreed, and the board went behind closed doors for the substantive discussion.

No details of the underlying certification lapse were discussed on the public record. When the board returned to open session, the chair moved directly to a vote without additional public explanation of what had been discussed privately.

"Do I have a motion to reprimand the chief for his poor judgment in placing engine 4 in service when it was not certified, to be confirmed in a letter as discussed in executive session?" — Board chair, unidentified in transcript

A member offered the motion and a second member seconded it. The board then voted, with members responding "aye," and the chair confirming the outcome as unanimous. No further explanation of Engine 4's certification status, when it was placed in service, or the scope of the written reprimand was offered on the record.

The board took no other business. A motion to adjourn followed immediately and was approved without objection, closing out one of the shortest public sessions of the year for this body.

Why It Matters

The vote formalizes discipline against the town's fire chief tied to placing an uncertified engine, Engine 4, into active service, a decision the board characterized on the record as poor judgment. The reprimand is to be documented in a formal letter, though the letter's contents were discussed only in executive session and were not read into the public record. Residents relying on Engine 4 for emergency response were not told during the public portion of the meeting whether the certification issue has since been resolved or whether the engine remains in service. The town employee named in connection with the underlying matter, Albert Basset, was not otherwise addressed on the public record.

Key Motions & Votes

- Vote: Reprimand of the fire chief for placing Engine 4 in service while not certified, to be confirmed in a letter Tally: Approved unanimously - Vote: Motion to adjourn the meeting Tally: Approved unanimously

Source

Town Of New Canaan: Other Committee meeting, February 19, 2026