09/05/2026
Yesterday was one of those days that reminds me exactly why I am so proud to be the Chief of Lebanon Fire-EMS.
Our department answered eight calls for service throughout the day. Our crews moved back and forth across our community, responding wherever they were needed. At one point, three serious emergencies came in within just 36 minutes—a chest pain emergency, a major multi-vehicle crash, and a cardiac arrest.
But this message isn’t really about the number of calls.
It’s about the people who answered them.
I want our community to know how incredibly proud I am of the men and women of Lebanon Fire-EMS.
Over the past year, I have watched this group work incredibly hard to become better. They have trained when it was difficult. They have challenged themselves. They have learned new skills, sharpened old ones, and pushed one another to improve.
They have put in the time and the work because they understand something very important: when someone calls 911, they deserve our very best.
Yesterday, all of that work mattered.
We were tested.
When one call came in after another, our people didn’t hesitate. Our on-duty crews responded. Our call members left their homes, their families, and whatever they were doing and came to help. When one ambulance was committed, another crew stepped forward. When our resources were stretched across town, more people answered.
There are moments in this profession when all the training, preparation, long hours, and sacrifices come together.
Yesterday was one of those moments.
As their Chief, there are few things that make me prouder than watching our people rise to the occasion when their community needs them most.
Our department isn’t made up simply of fire trucks, ambulances, equipment, or stations. It is made up of people. People who are willing to get out of bed, leave the dinner table, walk away from family gatherings, and put everything else aside because somewhere in Lebanon, someone may be having one of the worst moments of their life.
And when that happens, our people answer.
I also want to recognize the incredible departments and agencies surrounding Lebanon. When our resources were committed, our mutual aid partners stepped in without hesitation. Frisbie Memorial Hospital EMS, Rochester Fire Department, Sanford Fire Department, North Berwick Rescue, Maine LifeFlight, Maine DOT, law enforcement, dispatchers, and others all played a part in making sure our community continued to receive the help it needed.
There are no town lines when someone’s life is on the line. There are simply people helping people and communities taking care of one another. Yesterday, that system was tested, and our neighbors answered our call.
To every member of Lebanon Fire-EMS who answered yesterday: thank you.
Thank you for your dedication. Thank you for the hours you spend training. Thank you for answering when your community calls. Thank you for the sacrifices your families make so that you can serve someone else’s family. And thank you for continuing to believe in what we are building together.
I could not be more proud to be your Chief.
To our mutual aid partners, thank you for standing beside us. Your willingness to come into our community when we need you—and our ability to do the same for you—is what the fire and EMS service is all about.
And to the people of Lebanon, thank you for trusting us.
Thank you for trusting us to come through your door when you call for help. Thank you for trusting us with your families, your homes, and your lives during some of your most difficult moments. That trust is an incredible responsibility, and it is something we will never take for granted.
Yesterday was a difficult day. But it was also a reminder of just how strong this department, our mutual aid system, and our community can be when we come together.
Tomorrow, we will get up and do it again.
We will train. We will learn. We will improve. And when the next call comes, we will answer.
Because our goal remains simple:
Be better today than we were yesterday.
Community First. Service Always.
— Kevin Bataran
