PORTLAND – Chad Johnston has always wanted to be a firefighter. Today, he’s the fire chief in Maine’s largest city.

The Portland City Council made it official Monday night. The council voted unanimously to appoint Johnston and applauded him following the vote.

Johnston is taking over for retiring Fire Chief Keith Gautreau and officially started as chief on Tuesday.  

A Lyman native, Johnston, 51, said he has never imagined a career doing anything else.

“I’ve known this is what I wanted to do since a very young age,” he said.

Johnston started out working for the Saco Fire Department before transferring to Portland in 1999. He worked his way up, becoming deputy chief in 2018.  

City officials said he was chosen after a nationwide search.

Johnston holds an associate’s degree in fire science from New Hampshire Community College and expects to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in fire administration from Columbia Southern University in February 2025. 

Johnston said Tuesday that he had no big changes in mind for the department.

“We have been on a solid forward path under the past chief’s direction,” he said. “We absolutely expect to continue.”