State Fire Marshal Jon Davine Announces Retirement
STOW—The Healey-Driscoll Administration announced the retirement of State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine after a career of nearly 30 years in the Massachusetts fire service.
Davine, an Adams native, will step down as Massachusetts' 19th state fire marshal on Jan. 22, 2027. He graduated from Hoosac Valley in 1989.
"State Fire Marshal Davine's leadership and collaboration have helped Massachusetts lead the way in firefighter health, safety, and training," said Governor Maura Healey. "His calm and steady guidance have been invaluable to our crisis planning and response. I am deeply grateful for his service and wish him and his family the very best after so many years protecting public safety."
State Fire Marshal Davine was sworn in on August 16, 2023. Under his leadership, the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services undertook a series of initiatives, responses, and modernizations to improve fire protection, firefighter training, emergency preparedness, and hazard awareness in the Commonwealth, including:
- Coordinating Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosive preparation and staffing for the 2026 World Cup games in Foxborough;
- Assigning State Police fire investigators, code compliance officers, and support personnel to the Gabriel House fire response and investigation in 2025;
- Deploying hundreds of missions to assist local and state agencies battling Massachusetts' unprecedented 2024 brush fire season;
- Expanding the fire service's understanding of the risk posed by lithium-ion battery fires by hosting a symposium of subject matter experts and launching new data collection tool in 2023;
- Consolidating two Hazmat districts to more efficiently serve western Massachusetts;
- Broadening access to free firefighter cancer screening;
- Opening a new burn building to improve firefighter training in southeastern Massachusetts; and
- Bringing the Commonwealth into the top 5 percent of states reporting fire data through the new National Emergency Response Information System.
"From major fires and emergencies to collecting and reporting the data that drives our fire safety strategies, State Fire Marshal Davine has been a trusted leader and a valued partner," said Public Safety & Security Secretary Gina K. Kwon. "His passion and commitment to fire protection at every level of government have helped make Massachusetts one of the most fire-safe states in the nation."
Before his state service, State Fire Marshal Davine was chief of the Northampton Fire Department. The first state fire marshal to graduate from the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy, he rose through the ranks there during a 25-year career as a firefighter, Hazmat technician, and member of the Department of Fire Services' Joint Hazard Incident Response Team. He is a veteran of the US Marine Corps.
"Serving as State Fire Marshal and leading the Department of Fire Services has been my greatest professional honor and privilege," State Fire Marshal Davine said. "I especially want to recognize the dedicated staff at DFS, who work tirelessly in support of our firefighters and our Commonwealth. They deliver the highest standards of training, operational support, and fire protection expertise every single day."
The state fire marshal is selected by the Massachusetts Fire Service Commission. That eight-member body is appointed by the Governor and represents the fire service, insurance industry, and Executive Office of Public Safety & Security. Its members will meet in the days ahead to determine the process and timeline for selecting a new marshal.
Massachusetts appointed the nation's first state fire marshal in 1894. Today, the role oversees almost 1,000 full-time employees and contract staff on three regional campuses, with four operational divisions and the administrative offices that support them.
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