Six East Haven Firefighters, New Battalion Chief Sworn-In

EAST HAVEN, CT — "There is no more honorable a profession than that of a firefighter, and there is no greater place in the world to serve in this vocation than the town of East Haven," fire chief Matt Marcarelli summed up what the veteran firefighters, and the new kids on the block, feel.

Marcarelli made his remarks at the swearing in and promotional ceremony for the department's new Battalion Chief Christoper Rosa and six new firefighters, Brandon Hirshfield, Jeffrey Puciato, Liam Hamill, Salvatore Carlo, Eric Demeraski and John Hopkins, at Joseph Melillo Middle School Friday.

Mayor Joseph A. Carfora was also on hand to swear in East Haven's bravest.

"The fire department has always had a special place in my heart because my brother worked here for many years as a firefighter," he said.

"But as I near the completion of my first year as mayor, I have seen first hand how valuable the fire department is to our community. We have been faced with our normal level of emergencies but earlier this year we were hit by the pandemic and the fire department has been the lead agency in the response to assist our community who call 911 when they are in distress," Carfora said. "Not only that, they have been front and center in supporting efforts related to the pandemic; coordinating mask giveaways, food deliveries and a host of other things."

Carfora said the East Haven Fire Department responds to nearly 6,000 calls for service annually and is the "face of our town when they arrive."

"Since 1991 the department has not seen a staffing increase to answer the ever-growing demand, calls have gone from 2,500 annually to last year 5,488," Carfora said. "That’s why in my first budget, I supported the chief’s request for four new captain positions."

Rosa, who was promoted as a first line supervisor and incident commander, has served the department for 22 years and worked as a dispatcher before that while at the same time, served as a volunteer for Company 1.

Carfora said Rosa will be a "great fit for the department's command staff."

Here are Fire Chief Marcarelli's full remarks to East Haven's newest firefighters, and to new Battalion Chief Rosa:

"To the probationary firefighters I challenge you to never forget that your most important responsibility is to serve the public before yourselves. Self-serving interests or petty disagreements should never override your concern for public safety. The public takes care of you and all they ask in return is that occasionally you be willing to risk your live to save their loved ones, time between alarms for service will be peppered with boredom, station maintenance, relationship building, pre-plans, training, training and more training. Most f you have already seen much of that during your time with the department.

The occupation of a firefighter is ever-changing and the department must adapt to meet those demands. Never once from your lips should you utter the words, 'that’s not my job.' The past several months dealing with COVID-19 have presented us some challenges but so far all of us have remained healthy, we will continue to work through the pandemic together.

Remember this keep your eyes open and your mouth shut. Listen to your Battalion Chief and soon captain. Don’t be part of the problem, be part of the solution. Be careful with your use of social media, it’s a one-dimensional form of bad communication. Don’t involve yourself with destructive forces or firehouse politics, remember you are now public safety officials and the media will sensationalize whatever you do. Follow a true moral and ethical compass and never tarnish the badge of an East Haven Firefighter.

To Battalion Chief Chris Rosa, you have made the moved from Firefighter to Battalion Chief, you will need to bridge the gap from buddy to boss and never forget that your most important job will be keeping those under your command safe throughout their tour of duty and until they can get safely home.

This is a great accomplishment, one that you should be very proud. It is my hope that you will find this position one of the most fulfilling experiences in your professional life and based on my observations of your work history, performance at emergency incidents, the time you have spent in professional development and training as well as the respect you have of your peers and your performance in the interview with the commission you will be an excellent fit in this position.

Being a leader is not easy, you can expect to be met with some resistance, your peers may test you to determine your mettle, but I have no doubt that you are up to the challenge and I look forward to working with you for years to come."