CLAREMONT — The city’s chief building official and health officer died at Valley Regional Hospital after suffering a medical emergency while conducting an inspection over the weekend, according to a city news release.

Joel Tremblay, 47, served on the Claremont City Council from November 2023 through May 2024, when he resigned to start working for the city, Claremont Police Chief Brent Wilmot, who is serving as co-interim city manager, said Monday. Tremblay also was a Claremont police commissioner for nine years, ending in January 2023.

Wilmot called Tremblay’s death a “huge loss to the city.”

Tremblay “took it upon himself” to conduct a building inspection Saturday night after a complaint that came up late in the week began to garner public attention, Wilmot said.

“He had his ear to the ground, he was being responsive and he tried to solve problems,” Wilmot said. “He had a very strong work ethic. He was a good mentor to the other people in his office and he was a really good man, a good human being.”