Perry Plummer, a former Dover fire chief and senior New Hampshire emergency-management official, has been named interim director of the Pease Development Authority’s Ports and Harbors division.
Plummer will serve while the authority searches for a permanent director, the Pease Development Authority said. The appointment puts a public-sector leader with experience in coastal and statewide operations in charge of a division responsible for public ports and harbors.
Stephen Duprey, chair of the Pease Development Authority Board of Directors, said Plummer has experience leading organizations and improving their operations. The authority has described the interim appointment as a way to provide continuity in a position that has experienced turnover in recent years.
“New Hampshire’s ports and harbors are tremendous public assets that play a vital role in our state’s economy and coastal communities,” Plummer said.
Plummer’s public service background
Plummer, 67, retired earlier this year for the second time as chief of Dover Fire and Rescue. He first left that position in 2011 to become director of the New Hampshire Fire Academy and Bureau of Emergency Medical Services after being appointed by then-Gov. John Lynch.
He later served as assistant commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Safety and as New Hampshire’s director of Homeland Security and Emergency Management under former Govs. Maggie Hassan and Chris Sununu. During that period, he also chaired a national group of homeland-security advisers and directors.
- Plummer previously led Dover Fire and Rescue and served as interim fire chief in Rochester.
- He directed the New Hampshire Fire Academy and Bureau of Emergency Medical Services.
- He held senior roles in the state Department of Safety and Homeland Security and Emergency Management.
The Ports and Harbors division is part of the Pease Development Authority, which oversees public assets connected to the state’s aviation and maritime infrastructure. Plummer said the division has a strong foundation and that he intends to work with its staff on operations and possible improvements while it serves New Hampshire’s coastal communities.
Duprey said Plummer’s experience and approach made him suited to guide the division during the transition. The interim appointment will remain in place until the authority selects a permanent director.
