Photo by Stephainie Elverd Martin Ferry Mayor John Davies introduces Melissa Yeso as the city’s new safety director during Monday’s council meeting. Yeso will also serve as code administrator and development director.

MARTINS FERRY — Safety services took center stage at Wednesday’s Martins Ferry City Council meeting as Melissa Yeso was appointed safety director and officials reflected on last week’s catastrophic Pearl Street fire that claimed the life of one resident.

“Unfortunately, we had some things turn out not the way we wanted to, but our fire department, our volunteers and our surrounding mutual aid did a hell of a job,” Mayor John Davies said. “That fire could have burned down a whole block. We lost some houses, but we could have lost the block.”

Martins Ferry Fire Chief Justin Smith echoed the mayor’s sentiments.

“Without our mutual aid departments and without our membership here, that could have been much worse,” Smith said. “The work that our men and women displayed was incredible. To be able to save two of those structures after what we arrived at is incredible. I can’t say thanks enough.”

Firefighters were called to Pearl Street around 6 a.m. on New Year’s Eve after neighbors reported an explosion at a duplex. The structure was fully engulfed when crews arrived. Fire departments from Martins Ferry, Bridgeport and Colerain battled the blaze for several hours, using heavy machinery to knock it down and hosing down hot spots in the rubble. Authorities later confirmed that 74-year-old Deborah L. Wilson died in the fire.

“It could have been much more tragic than it was,” said Councilman Jim Schramm, who chairs the safety committee. “It was bad enough losing one life, but there could have been many more had the fire department not responded the way they did.”

Former councilwoman Yeso was named safety director after Davies recommended last month that the city split the service and safety director position into two roles. Andy Sutak had been performing both duties, with assistance from Davies, but, beginning in 2026, Davies will work only part time, creating too large a workload for one person, he said.

Yeso will also serve as the city’s code administrator and development director.

“Melissa is going to be a very strong aid to the administration as we work on future projects like getting East Ohio Regional Hospital back open,” Davies said. “She’s a good asset to the city of Martins Ferry.”

Davies said Yeso brings a fresh perspective as the city looks ahead to 2026.

The mayor also welcomed new council members Andrew Smay, Ryan Robey and Gus Harris, who were sworn in alongside re-elected members Robert Hunker, Spencer Echemann, Jim Schramm and James Agnew during the meeting – council’s first of the year.

Echemann was later named mayor pro tem, while Phil Wallace presided as the new council president, replacing longtime president Kristine Davis, who did not seek re-election after 25 years of service.

All and all, Davies said the new faces and experience on council will move the city in the right direction — and maybe some new directions.

“The city of Martins Ferry and the people who lead the city, we have an old way of thinking. That’s just the way the city is and most cities and villages in the valley are like that,” Davies said. “But we have Mr. Robey and Mr. Smay, so we have some new thinking. Ms. Yeso is a new way of thinking. One of the reasons I was so adamant about bringing Ms. Yeso on is because she brings a young breath of fresh air to the city. We are not too young to be foolish but young enough to make changes.”

In other matters, Davies announced that Broadway Street, which had been closed due to a 15-foot sinkhole, opened to one lane on Wednesday and was expected to reopen to both lanes on Monday. The undertaking to repair the sink hole cost roughly $50,000.

Council also heard from a resident regarding cats in the city destroying his property and asked that an existing ordinance that prohibits electric fencing for the most part in the city be reconsidered. The matter was forwarded to the ordinance committee.