Now Both Sides Agree: 17 of 28 Active VOL Firefighters Resign

by Judy Silberstein*

(July 12, 2007) For months it has been unclear how many, if any, volunteer members of the Larchmont Fire Department had actually resigned in the wake of the board’s hiring of a paid fire chief over their choice of a volunteer. (See: Questions Cloud the Future of Larchmont’s Fire Department.) This week, the new chief and the volunteers appear to be in agreement that at least 17 of the 28 most active volunteers have resigned. (The chief’s count is 17 and the volunteers' is 18.)

A less accurate count exists for the rest of the volunteers, the 24 members with under 15% attendance for the year. (Fifteen of these have attended fewer than 5% of departmental events.) Most in this group are not responding to fire calls because of age, availability or training. Two have definitely resigned and others have indicated their intention to resign.

Leaders of the four fire companies and the chief agree that among the resigning members are the two deputy chiefs, both captains and all but one of the 4 lieutenants.

However there continues to be some dispute over the resignation of particular individuals and the roles the different members may play.

No Quorum at Fire Council? Fire Chief Rich Heine (far left) and Engine Company President Brian Payne (at right end of table) consult departmental bylaws on Monday night as they attempt to settle a dispute over who can serve on the council.

According to Chief Rich Heine, he has still not received the rosters from three of the four volunteer companies that would allow him to ascertain which of the remaining active members are qualified (by virtue of attendance level and pre-requisite experience) to fill the leadership vacancies. A deputy chief, for example, must have served actively (attending a minimum of 15% of departmental events) for at least 8 years and have 3 years experience as a captain or lieutenant.

Also, according to the chief, the attendance at alarms continues at the same rate as before he was appointed – an average of 4 volunteers and three paid firefighters. This figure is disputed by the group of volunteers who sued the Village Board and Chief Heine. (See: Judge Weighs Case by Firefighters Against Village Board.) In an affidavit filed as part of the suit, former Deputy Chief Tom Broderick put the average response rate of the volunteers at alarms and related activity in the year prior to the hiring of Chief Heine at over 10.

For the future, the chief has four completed applications for new members, including an Explorer (junior member) who has now turned 18, and three adults, two of whom are brothers of Brian Doherty, head of the Larchmont Professional Firefighters Association. One of the Doherty brothers is a New York City firefighter.

So What’s the Plan?

“The plan is to continue to train with the career and volunteer staff, increase the volunteer membership and prepare for emergencies,” said Chief Heine. “No department can stand ready for a major disaster by itself. You can prepare as best you can.” On a regular basis, however, he did not see a problem with the current level of manpower.

This view was countered by Mike Wiener, a former fire chief, former Village trustee, recent plaintiff in the lawsuit against the Village Board and, for now, a “non-resigner.”

“If you actually have more than 50% of your top manpower resigning, you cannot guarantee adequate consistent response,” said Mr. Wiener. “A new recruit takes 6 months to a year to train – at a minimum – and then they need some experience at real incidents,” he said.

And Where’s the Fire Council?

Having the right number of volunteers with sufficient years in service is also important for staffing the Fire Council, the department's governing body.

On Monday evening, July 9, the monthly meeting of the Fire Council was called off after Chief Heine asserted a lack of a quorum. There were enough individuals seated at the council table, but by the chief’s view, two were no longer eligible to serve. He claimed Ray Maldonado, president of Hook and Ladder Company, and Ned Benton, warden of Engine Company, had resigned and were no longer eligible to serve.

In a reversal of the positions assumed in the last two months, this time it was the chief claiming the members had resigned and the members arguing, strenuously, that they had not. Chief Heine and Trustee Jim Millstein, who serves as the Fire Commissioner (the Village Board's liaison to the Fire Department) further asserted that Mr. Benton was ineligible to serve on council because he had not been attending fire calls (and therefore was no longer an active member) and had not been approved by the Village Board, a requirement in the bylaws that has generally been overlooked for a number of years.

After an hour of back and forth, the meeting ended when Engine Company President Brian Payne got up and left, leaving no question that a quorum was lacking.

For Mr. Benton the question was moot by Wednesday, when he formally resigned following an Engine Company meeting. Mr. Wiener was elected to take his place.

Meanwhile, Mr. Maldonado was told by the chief to re-apply and be re-approved by the Village board if he wanted to continue as a member of the department - although not necessarily as a member of the Fire Council. “I refuse to do that,” he said, leaving his status in continued dispute.

Does The Fire Council Matter?

The Fire Council has not met since the board appointed its paid chief. And until the membership of the Fire Council is resolved, it won’t be able to meet. That leaves a number of business items unresolved, including the payment of outstanding bills and, significantly, the acceptance of new volunteers.

In defending against the lawsuit brought by a group of volunteers, attorneys for the Village Board contended that they had not, as claimed by the plaintiffs, abolished the Fire Department since the Fire Council is still active, and the four companies still elect their two representatives to the Fire Council.

Chief Heine reiterated this position. “It’s up to the membership to elect the [deputy] chiefs and the wardens,” he said this week. However, Chief Heine and Trustee Millstein made clear that the Village Board will be taking an active role in the process and that approval of the companies’ candidates can no longer be taken for granted.

*Judy Silberstein is married to Ned Benton.

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