2 Greenport Fire Department Members Suspended After 'Serious Violation': Chief

GREENPORT, NY — Two members of the Greenport Fire Department were suspended after a "serious violation" of the department's bylaws, Greenport Fire Chief Albie de Kerillis said Tuesday.

According to de Kerillis: "The Chiefs of the Greenport Fire Department were advised on or about October 31, 2025, of a serious violation of Department bylaws. Following a thorough investigation, formal charges were filed, and a fair hearing was conducted. After careful deliberation, a unanimous decision regarding responsibility and discipline was reached and ordered."

The charge, he said, "was specifically 'conduct unbecoming a member based on the unauthorized installation and operation of a Ring camera system in the truck bay at the firehouse, located at 311 Third Street, Greenport, New York."

No specific details of the incident in question were immediately disclosed.

Also, de Kerillis said, "The decision of guilt and suspension was unanimous."

He added that the two members remain suspended.

"With the exception of counsel, all participants in this process were and remain volunteer members of the Department. We extend our sincere appreciation for their service and professionalism under added demands at a time when fire departments are contending with decreased volunteerism and unprecedented call volumes," de Kerillis said. "We have full confidence in our membership, the chain of command, and the Department's governance structure. Throughout this necessary process, all rules and regulations were strictly followed, all parties were treated fairly and with respect, and the result is just."

The Suffolk Times first reported, and Kerillis confirmed to Patch, that in recent days, the Greenport Fire Department's rescue squad had lost its Advanced Life Support authorization from the New York State Department of Health.

"The state has revoked our license pending the ongoing investigation," de Kerillis told Patch.

That means that the rescue squad can no longer perform functions such as give medication, perform life-saving cardiac procedures, or utilized IVs, he said.

EMTs can still perform lifesaving CPR, as well as cardiac procedures "to save a life," de Kerillis said.

In the interim, those emergency calls are being sent to neighboring EMS departments, officials said.

Suffolk County Fire, Rescue and Emergency Services Commissioner Rudy Sunderman told Patch that the New York State Department of Health has initiated an investigation into the Greenport Fire Department and revoked their ALS license.

However, he confirmed, the GFD does have basic life support capabilities. In addition, he said, Stony Brook University Hospital has an ALS provider in the Greenport area 24 hours a day, seven days a week, "to assist the residents of Greenport until we're able to get Greenport's license recertified."

Mutual aid from neighboring fire departments is also in place; a Stony Brook University Hospital paramedic is also present on Greenport rigs as patients head to the hospital, Sunderman said.

"There is no loss of care to patients," Sunderman said.

And, he added, Suffolk County EMS will help Greenport work through the process to get their license back. "It's a state issue but we will support them in any way we can," he said.

Also in recent days, the Greenport Fire Department's firehouse was broken into.

After that incident, de Kerillis said there was costly damage to repair in the wake of the incident.

According to Southold Town Police Chief Steve Grattan, between Friday, February 13 and Saturday, February 14 at around 10 a.m., "an unknown person possibly tampered with the locks and gained access to the 3rd St. Firehouse."

The individual "flipped three pictures upside down," the chief said.

Speaking with Patch, de Kerillis said the break-in is under investigation. What concerns him, he said, "is the $2,000 in materials and labor to repair this double door, which is used by the public to attend meetings" Greenport Village officials conduct.

He added that the photos being flipped "does not concern me — as that, in itself, is child's play. I run a fire department that handles more than 1,100 calls — not a school."

When asked if there was a connection between the recent suspensions, the ALS revocation, and the break-in, de Kerillis said he could not comment.

Greenport Village Mayor Kevin Steussi did not immediately return a request for comment.