Allingtown firefighters steamed up over selection of outsider as chief

Allingtown firefighters steamed up over selection of outsider as chief

Joe McGurk, Register Staff

May 11, 2001

WEST HAVEN — Allingtown firefighters are fuming because fire commissioners didn’t tap a member of their ranks as the new chief, the president of their union said Thursday.

But department officials and former co-workers said retired New Haven Fire Department Lt. Elmer Henderson is the best candidate for the job.

"The guys are not happy," firefighters’ union President Leo "Butch" Arria said Thursday. "The choice doesn’t make any sense and it doesn’t help the morale of the men."

Allingtown Board of Fire Commissioners Chairman Aaron Haley said he fielded dozens of complaints Thursday following the board’s decision Wednesday to offer Henderson the chief’s job.

Some residents complained that the appointment only was made to satisfy demands for more diversity in the department, Haley said.Henderson, 51, of New Haven, has accepted the post. He retired in 1999 from the New Haven Fire Department and now works as a state marshal at Superior Court in New Haven.

He will be the first black chief in any of the city’s three all-white fire departments.

West Haven has three separate fire departments that cover different sections of the city, Allingtown, the Center district and the West Shore.

The department had been searching for a new chief for Allingtown since last fall, when after 25 years, then-Chief Richard Massaro resigned amid allegations he uttered racial slurs about black Allingtown residents at work.

The Board of Fire Commissioners interviewed nine local and regional candidates after receiving 30 applications.

Department sources said the three main candidates for the job were Henderson, Center district Assistant Chief William Abbott and Allingtown Deputy Chief Victor Sampietro.

Arria said commissioners should have had someone familiar with firefighting or department administration sit in on the interviews, like department brass.

Interviews were conducted last Friday with Haley, the two other Allingtown fire commissioners, John Samperi and Calvin DeLoatch, and Robert Arnold, the board’s attorney.

"They had two deputy chiefs who applied who were one step away from the chief’s position, and both with administrative experience," Arria said. "I don’t see how they can justify picking Henderson." Deputy Fire Chief Victor Sampietro has been with the department 26 years. He has run the department since Massaro resigned.

"This department doesn’t need any more controversy," Arria said. "They need someone who can go in there and straighten the place out."

Henderson said he is pleased with the board’s decision.

"I’m just elated about the appointment. I’ve spent half my life in the fire service, and that’s what I do best." He said he knows his appointment is controversial.

"It could be difficult, but not necessarily so. Some of those guys over there know my history, and me, and I think I’m well respected," Henderson said.

"They have to understand that change is inevitable," he said. "We have to deal with what arises, and hopefully things will not be as bad as it’s being made out."

Henderson joined the New Haven Fire Department in August 1973. He was awarded the Medal of Valor in March 1976 after a 1975 fire on Congress Avenue, where Henderson carried four injured firefighters out of the burning building.

People who know Henderson said he was a heroic firefighter, capable of sorting out Allingtown’s problems.

"He’ll make an excellent chief. I’ve known him for 15 years. He was a mentor to me," said New Haven Fire Department Assistant Chief Ron Dumas, a former Allingtown resident. "He is a fair person. He has good direction, just what Allingtown needs."

Dumas said he witnessed Henderson’s leadership when Henderson was president of the Firebirds, a black and Hispanic firefighters’ organization. Also, he said Henderson proved his abilities when he became lieutenant in 1981, and then a few years later when he became acting captain of a 10-man crew.

"He’s definitely a leader," Dumas said.

Carroll Brown, president of the West Haven Black Coalition, agreed. She said the district desperately needs more minority representation.

Mayor H. Richard Borer said it was "hard to comment because I haven’t been part of the process" since the fire departments are separate from the city.

He said, "The appointment came as a surprise, so I can only say ‘congratulations’" to Henderson. Borer added that Henderson may be the chief who sees his department consolidate with the other two — a move that has been considered on and off for years.

Borer wants the city’s three fire department’s to unite, a process that may be one of Henderson’s largest challenges in Allingtown.

Haley said the commission still has to negotiate a contract with Henderson. Massaro earned $70,278 a year as chief. Massaro worked only two years of his last 10-year contract.

"If we agree on a contract, then he’s appointed," Haley said. "It will all be done in the near future, and I don’t foresee a problem with this process."