BELLOWS FALLS — A local official who was fired for leaving his town's offices for a personal appointment during a fire alarm has been given his job back.

Rockingham Finance Director John O'Connor was serving as acting town manager on Feb. 19 while the current acting town manager was out.

O'Connor left when the fire alarm went off, thinking it was a false alarm. But the alarm signaled a broken sprinkler pipe.

O'Connor was later fired by the acting town manager Francis "Dutch" Walsh for dereliction of duty.

O'Connor and Walsh met Monday and Walsh decided it would be in the town's best interest to bring O'Connor back as finance manager.