OTTUMWA — Sean Canto of Rochester Hills, MI, has been named as the City of Ottumwa’s new Fire Chief. Chief Canto has been in the fire service for 33 years. He began his fire service career in 1991 with the Wyomissing Fire Department in Pennsylvania. Chief Canto has worked in Pennsylvania, New Mexico, Ohio, Kentucky, Michigan, and now Iowa. He has served in many different fire service positions including suppression, prevention, and training. In 2014, Chief Canto assumed the role as the Chief of Fire and Emergency Services for the City of Rochester Hills Fire Department in the Detroit Metro area, retiring in 2024.

Chief Canto has an Associate Degree in Fire Science, a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration, and a Master’s in Public Administration. Chief Canto is accredited through the International Fire Service Accreditation Congress for numerous levels and is also a Nationally Registered EMT-Paramedic. Chief Canto also completed the National Fire Academy’s Executive Fire Officer Program.

Chief Canto previously served as the Commander of the Jefferson County (Louisville, KY) Special Operations Team and was a Rescue Team Manager for the Louisville Metro Urban Search and Rescue Team. Chief Canto was deployed to New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina and Baltimore for Hurricane Isabella. Chief Canto has operational experience in Technical Rescue, including responding to and overseeing the operations of numerous large-scale Technical Rescue emergencies.