Fire chief hangs up uniform

By JILL BODACH
Hour Staff Writer

NORWALK -- You can take the man out of the firehouse, but you can't take the firehouse out of the man. Even after Fire Chief Sanford Anderson leaves Charles A. Volk Station today for the last time, there will be a part of him that will never really leave, a part of him that will be on every call in the middle of the night and with every firefighter as he rushes into a burning home with a charged fire hose. "I don't know how it's going to be to wake up Friday morning and not come to work at the firehouse after 45 years," Anderson said. "It will be odd not to put my uniform on. It'll feel strange to wear jeans." To someone trained to jump at the sound of an alarm or the screech of a siren, it will be hard to stop the immediate reaction to the sounds that have been as much a constant in his life as his mother's voice or the ringing of a telephone. "Sirens will never be the same to me," Anderson said. "I will always wonder where they're going and what they're doing. I'm still going to have my scanner on at home all the time because I'm nosy. I'll still go to the big fires anyway because it will always be part of my life." When Anderson hangs up his uniform tonight he will do so with a lot of pride and a lot of joy in the job that has spanned over four decades. "It's been a wonderful career for me, and I'm really proud that I was able to come through the ranks and make it as far as I have," Anderson said. Anderson first became interested in firefighting when he was in the Navy in the 1950s. "We had to learn to put out fires because when you're in the middle of the ocean it's not like you can call the fire department if something starts burning," Anderson said. "After that, I was really interested in firefighting and took this job when my four years in the service were up." Current firefighters have the same determination that Anderson had when he was starting out and, to some degree, they have more pressure because, despite all the technological advances designed to keep them safe, there are threats that exist today that did not exist when Anderson was a line man. "Our guys today have a lot of responsibility for EMS and HAZMAT calls that I didn't have to worry about," Anderson said. "These guys are very skilled in a lot of tasks." Norwalk's firefighters don't always get the credit they deserve, Anderson said, and that is something he regrets. "We have a very young department with a lot of kids who are hungry for knowledge, and I think that's a great thing for this department," Anderson said. "There is a negative perception of firefighters just sitting around and watching television and that's not true and not fair to these guys. This is a highly technical job that involves a lot more than putting the wet stuff on the red stuff. This job takes a toll on guys after awhile, and the public should be aware of that and be proud of their firefighters." Anderson partially blames the city for the negative perception of the fire department and the lack of acknowledgment the firefighters receive. "I do believe that to some degree the fire department has been ignored by the city and it's unfair to the department," Anderson said. "The fire department has always been viewed as a second-class citizen behind the police department. Our guys aren't getting a good deal, but they are putting out a lot of effort and giving a lot of themselves." Anderson said that the police department has done a better job of selling itself than the fire department has and that he hopes in the future the fire department will be more in the public's eye so that their work doesn't go unnoticed. A big boost for the fire department will come when the contract is signed. Anderson is hopeful that will happen soon. "I hope that this comes to some sort of resolution soon," Anderson said. "We've gone long enough without a contract, and the guys are getting disgusted. I feel they have a legitimate reason to feel the way they do. They've been the underdog for awhile, and all they want is what's fair. In addition to leaving the department with a low morale because of the contract disputes, Anderson also regrets the low number of minorities represented in the fire department's roster. "I truly regret that there aren't more minorities on the job," Anderson said. "Since 1986, there have been 83 firefighters hired and only three of them have been minorities. Right now, we only have two Hispanics in the department." Anderson said that the reason for the low number of minorities is because there hasn't been enough recruitment efforts in the minority community and that minorities don't always see firefighting as a viable career option for them. "I want to be a role model for everyone coming up through the ranks, but especially minorities, so they can see that this is a rewarding job and one they should consider," Anderson said. Despite some of the difficulties the department has been plagued with, Anderson said the firefighters have continued to move forward, continuing to learn more and work harder. "I've seen this department grow practically from the days of horse-and-buggy to today, and I think that the department is going to continue to move forward under the new chief and the standards are going to continue to rise," Anderson said. As for Anderson, he is going to spend his time being a role model for people outside of the walls of the fire department, including his four grandchildren as well as Norwalk residents. Anderson said he has been invited to serve on several boards, and he will do as much as he can to continue to serve his city. Running for some sort of public office might also be in the cards for Anderson, he said. "I'd still love to be fighting fires. I'd still love to be running into a building with a charged line, but that's not in the cards right now," Anderson said. "But I've had a great career."