Welcome To Our 8 New Recruits!
They’ve done it! Connecticut Fire Academy Recruit Class 72 has pushed on through and with that, we at the West Haven Fire Department have gained 8 new members. Welcome additions to a rapidly expanding family!
Announcements
REMINDER: Flag Retirement Ceremony at Center District HQ
REMINDER: If you or anyone you know has flags no longer fit for display, please bring them by our Flag Retirement Box posted outside our headquarters on 366 Elm Street. A ceremony to honorably retire these flags will be held on Saturday, December 9, at 10AM.
Worn U.S. Flags Can Be Dropped Off at our Headquarters
We now have a U.S Flag retirement box posted directly outside our Center District headquarters. All are welcome to bring flags no longer fit for display and place them into this box. A ceremony to honorably retire these flags will be held at our headquarters located on 366 Elm Street, Saturday, December 9, 10AM.
Introducing our Newest Lieutenant, Brandon Giannelli!
Huge congratulations are in order for our very own Brandon Giannelli who has been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant.
Originally a volunteer with West Haven Hook and Ladder Company 1, Brandon joined our department on July 22, 2015 and throughout his tenure has worked on our D and B shifts respectively.
We wish now Lieutenant Giannelli all the best in his exciting new career chapter as a fire officer!
Remembering September 11, 2001
The City of West Haven honored the sacrifice, courage and loss of first responders, victims, and the families and communities impacted by the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001. While it is human nature to have the pain and circumstance of life allow the memories of such an event to fade, it remains essential that we #neverforget, and as we mark this 22nd year since that awful day, that date takes on greater meaning. This morning, we read the names of each of the 343 firefighters who made the ultimate sacrifice on 9/11/01. And this year was the first year that post-9/11 occupational cancer deaths, directly linked to the rescue and recovery efforts that followed in the days, weeks, and months afterwards, surpassed the 343 mark, meaning more firefighters have died from cancer trying to recover their fallen brothers and sisters, than died on that day, with plenty more to unfortunately follow the same path. Also, for the first time in our department’s history, we have firefighters who were born after 9/11/01. With that, we have an additional essential responsibility to teach this new generation of not just our mistakes, but our triumphs too. Our failures, as well as our joys. How we got here and where we can succeed. The worst and the best came out of 9/11. 22 years later, our next step is to teach the next generation of first responders while they may not be able to forget something they’ve never known, they should #alwaysremember why we do the Job…
The West Haven Fire Department Welcomes 8 New Recruits
Sincere congratulations to our eight new recruits who were officially sworn in as members of the West Haven Fire Department. These recruits have commenced their 14 weeks of training at the Connecticut Fire Academy. They were hired under the Safer Grant provided through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grants (SAFER) was created to provide funding directly to fire departments and volunteer firefighter interest organizations to help them increase or maintain the number of trained, “front line” firefighters available in their communities. The West Haven Fire Department is one of only two departments in Connecticut to receive this grant in 2023. Aggressively pursuing grants such as this is one of many ways the West Haven Fire Department brings the citizens of West Haven the best possible service. We wish these recruits the best and look forward to having them on staff and working with them in the near future. We congratulate them once more on their noble choice of joining the West Haven Fire Department.
Senior Firefighter Frank Paine Assigned Badge No. 1
Congratulations to Firefighter Frank Paine on his assignment of the prestigious department badge number one. Badge number one is assigned to the most tenured firefighter in the department. Firefighter Paine was hired on September 3, 1996, and 27 years later remains an integral member of our department. He takes over for Joseph Bruneau who was recently promoted to Lieutenant. Lieutenant Bruneau held badge number one from December 28, 2022, to May 23, 2023.
Introducing Our Newly Promoted Captain, John Perry!
The West Haven Fire Department would like to congratulate Lieutenant John Perry on his promotion to the rank of Captain. Captain Perry was hired by our department on October 1, 1999. He was promoted to Lieutenant on April 15, 2020 and currently served as president of the West Haven Professional Firefighters Local 1198. Congratulations John and thank you for all you’ve done and continue to do for both our department and our city!
