Hamden Fire Retirees Association, Inc.

  MARCH 2022
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March 24 - The rotunda of Hamden's Memorial Town Hall was packed with dozens of active, retired, and out-of-town fire department members yesterday morning as sixteen-year department veteran Jeffrey Naples was sworn in as the department's tenth assistant chief.

 

 

The firefighter in the foreground is Wilbur Baker,and the fellow in the background at right (with the "5" on his helmet) is Co. 5 volunteer Gil Spencer, who would be appointed to the career department later that year in December.

Fifty years ago, Co. 5 member Steve Law and his brother Gwil purchased two Sony reel-to-reel video black-and-white tape recorders (VTRs) for Third-Eye Video, a small business they established for recording major events for clients.  The incredibly heavy tape decks held seven-inch reels of half-inch videotape that stored up to one-hour of black-and-white video.  (Color videotape cassette recorders were not generally available - and affordable - until the early 1980s, when Betamax and VHS VCRs were beginning to appear in many American homes.)

 

The following year, on March 16, 1973, Steve and a few other members of the fire company were doing some random video recording at Station 5 when Engine 5 was dispatched on a call for a small brush fire along the Canal Line, which was still operating at the time.  The camera operator was able to catch Firefighter Tony "Moonman" Melillo getting into the driver's seat of the 1952 Maxim 750 GPM pumper just before exiting the firehouse and heading north on Whitney Avenue.  His rider, who is unseen, was Firefighter Ed Doiron.

 

This audio is long gone, but the video clearly shows Station 5's pre-annex landscape, with the flagpole in its original location, abutting the parking lot at Mt. Carmel School, which was still open.  Two years later, in a  property exchange between Co. 5 and the Board of Education, the boundary was moved ten feet north in order to accommodate the Raymond K. Spencer Annex which was officially dedicated on September 4, 1975.

Some of the other videos from that day are still around. Unfortunately, one of the more memorable events captured on video that day cannot be found. It was a scene showing Deputy Chief Jim Strain performing a daily test of a fire alarm box. On this particular day he was testing Box 18 on the front of the firehouse, which can be seen in the Engine 5 response video above.

 

With the camera aimed squarely at the Gamewell tape register on the watch desk, Chief Strain pulled the box.  We eagerly awaited the register tapping out one, then eight holes four times on the one-inch wide paper tape that documented the alarms.  And we waited.  And waited.  After a few more seconds you could faintly hear Firefighter Ed Doiron laughing in the background (Chief Strain was not amused) as NOTHING happened.

 

So the first time anyone had EVER video recorded a box test, the test failed!  When Asst. Supt. Paul Wetmore investigated, he discovered a nail from the Autumn 1972 basement renovation had shorted out the wire pair going to and from Box 18.  Murphy's Law.

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Another Box 18 story:  Until the mid-1980s only two firefighters were assigned to Station 5.  One night in the 1970s, a junior man, the driver, was in charge because his partner was on vacation.  The guy hired to replace him for that shift, like the driver, was relatively new on the job.

In the middle of the night, some joker pulled Box 18 and took off (surprise!). The acting senior man checked the fire box rolodex, "BOX 18 - Corner Ives and Whitney."  It was a VERY old card, typed before the box was moved.

 

The two firefighters hopped on Engine 5 and were at the corner of Ives and Whitney within seconds.

 

Engine 5:  "Engine 5 to Headquarters, we're here at Ives and Whitney, but we cannot find Box 18."

 

Dispatcher Wilbur Baker:  "The last time I was up there, it was on the front of the fire station."

 

 

Hamden – Mayor Lauren Garrett has appointed Hamden Fire Department Captain Jeffrey Naples as Assistant Fire Chief, pending Legislative Council approval.  Capt. Naples received his Bachelor of Science in Biology with a concentration in Secondary Education from Southern Connecticut State University in 2004, and further went on to receive a Master of Science in Emergency Management from University of New Haven in 2021. He has also attended the National Fire Academy.

 

Capt. Naples has served the Hamden Fire Department for the past 16 years as a Firefighter, Lieutenant, and station Captain. He has a proven track record as a fire officer, including Incident Management, Fireground Operations, Station Management, and collaboration on administrative projects.

 

Capt. Naples understands the importance of having a crew who is healthy and fit for duty, and will prioritize physical and mental health, firefighter safety, and the overall wellbeing of Hamden Fire Department employees. He is committed to community risk reduction, the strategic and responsible use of departmental resources, and using data to measure the success of programs and initiatives.

 

As the department's assistant fire chief, Naples will directly contribute to improving diversity on the Hamden Fire Department through cooperation with the Personnel Department as they recruit and test for new employees, in order to fully serve the Hamden community and strengthen the Fire Department.

 

Jeff Naples leads by example, and has proven experience in teambuilding, decision making, operations management, and interpersonal communications. He will continue to be an incredible asset to Hamden’s Fire Department.

 

He will be joining the Fire Administration once his position is approved by the Legislative Council.  The members of the Hamden Fire Retirees Association wish Asst. Chief-designate Naples all the very best in his new department role.

March 23 - (HARTFORD, CT) – Governor Ned Lamont today announced that – in accordance with a proclamation from President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. directing flags to be lowered throughout the country as a mark of solemn respect for Madeleine Albright – he is directing U.S. and state flags in Connecticut to fly at half-staff beginning immediately until sunset on Sunday, March 27, 2022.

Accordingly, since no flag should fly higher than the U.S. flag, all other flags, including state, municipal, corporate, or otherwise, should also be lowered during this same duration of time.

“Madeleine Albright championed human rights across the globe,” Governor Lamont said. “In every role in which she served, she promoted peace and democracy, something we need today more than ever. She was a trailblazer who made our homeland safer by strengthening relationships with people and nations around the globe. Her passing is a terrible loss to our nation that will be felt well beyond our borders. Annie and I send condolences to her friends and family.

CLICK HERE to read the Presidential Proclamation.

Posted 3/25/2022