OTTUMWA — The City of Ottumwa Friday afternoon announced the hire of Sean Canto as its next fire chief.
Canto replaces Tony Miller, who retired in September 2023, leaving the city with an interim fire chief since then.
In a press release sent late in the day, the city said that Canto, a native of Rochester Hills, Michigan, has been in fire service for 33 years, working in six states during that time.
Canto, who has an associate degree in fire science, a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a Master of Public Administration, began his career in 1991 with the Wyomissing Fire Department in Pennsylvania. After that, he moved on to fire departments in New Mexico, Ohio, Kentucky and Michigan before arriving in Iowa.
Over that time, he has served in several fire service positions including suppression, prevention and training. In 2014, he took the role of Chief of Fire and Emergency Services in Rochester, which is a suburb of Detroit, before retiring last year.
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Canto is accredited through the International Fire Service Accreditation Congress and is a nationally registered EMT.
Canto previously served as the commander of the Jefferson County (Kentucky) Special Operations Team and was a rescue team manager for the Louisville Metro Urban Search and Rescue Team. He was deployed to New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina and to Baltimore during Hurricane Isabella.
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