Greenwich Citizen

Don't Expect New Fire Chief to Look, Act His Age

By PATRICIA Mc CORMACK

Friday, July 22, 2005- Chalk up two "firsts" for Sanford "Sandy" Anderson, Greenwich's new fire chief, introduced a week ago by First Selectman Jim Lash in Town Hall and on the job since Monday. At 73, Anderson is the oldest town fire chief ever and perhaps the oldest department head. He's also the first black chief

and the second highest ranking black in town government. The first, Dr. Larry Leverett, is superintendent of schools. "Don't expect me to look or act my age," a confident and athletic-looking Anderson quipped in response to a reporter's question

"What age are you?"

In a vote of 2-0, the 3-person Board of Selectmen approved Anderson's appointment. Selectman Penny Monahan did not vote "Yes" due to the fact that she didn't have a chance to talk to him prior to the vote. The two votes in favor were cast by Lash and Selectman Peter Crumbine. Lash introduced Anderson during a news conference attended by, among others, Dan Warzoha, Greenwich fire chief who retired June 30 to become the town's emergency management operations coordinator. When the question of Anderson's age surfaced, Lash observed that President Ronald Reagan, during a debate preceding his election, when presented with a question about his age, quipped to his younger challenger

"I won't hold your age and lack of experience against you."

Anderson smiled about that, displaying a sunny side. He appears extremely physically fit. He's passed physicals annually while with the Norwalk Fire Department

the last six months ago. He expects to continue full steam ahead, a mark of persons endowed with so called "longevity genes." "You name it, I've done it," Anderson said when asked of his feats. He is a 46-year veteran who rose through the ranks to become chief of the Norwalk Fire Department. His three-year contract with the Town of Greenwich pays $114,015 the first year.

A graduate of the U.S. Navy Fire Fighting School, Anderson served as a firefighter on ships from 1951-55. That takes extraordinary skills, according to Lash, noting there's no place to go when you're fighting a fire at sea. The search for a new chief spanned four months, drew 40 candidates and resulted in interviews for six including one candidate from the Greenwich fire department whom Lash declined to identify."Anderson's experience in every facet of fire operations, from training to command operations, makes him a perfect fit for the chief's position," Lash said. "You were really a standout and we are very happy to welcome you to Greenwich."

Anderson's Rise Through the Ranks

Anderson has been training fire fighters for more than 30 years in Norwalk, numerous other towns and at the State of Connecticut Fire Academy. Lash said that everyone on the selection committee he spoke to about Sandy Anderson agreed he is the "firefighter's firefighter." "Sandy has the respect of everyone in the fire service, from entry-level firefighters to command staff officers," he said. Warzoha, 52, in 1975 was taught by Anderson at a Connecticut Regional Fire Academy in New Haven. In recent years the two have worked together frequently, most recently during a Congressional-mandated Homeland Security Drill responding to a mock chemical plant explosion in New London.

The "search and rescue drill," April 4-6, brought together hundreds of first responders from around the state, including teams from Norwalk and Greenwich. The drill was "hands on" all the way and not simulated, Warzoha recalled later. The Greenwich HAZMAT truck was on the scene and Chief Anderson had hands-on experience with it. The truck, the gem of the Greenwich Fire Department, is equipped to decontaminate victims of chemical attacks. Warzoha said the "victims" he and Anderson's crews had to search for

dummies and live persons threaded through debris

were made to look realistic, oozing blood and displaying broken bones.

"Being so close to New York City," Chief Anderson said during his Greenwich debut, "we have to be able to handle whatever flows up to us from incidents in New York. "We have to have incident command systems in place to deal with what comes our way." In this era of terrorism, he indicated, Greenwich is on the front line of homeland security, just as the rest of America is. The interview panel that settled on Anderson included Lash, Town Administrator Ed Gomeau and Peter Carozza, chairman of the State Commission on Fire Prevention and Control and president of the State of Connecticut Uniform Fire Fighters Association.

Anderson applied for the position after the city of Norwalk, headed by Mayor Alex Knopp, "sort of let me out to pasture." From 1980 to 1998, Anderson was deputy fire chief in Norwalk; from 1998 to 2004, assistant fire chief. He was appointed to a one-year tenure as Norwalk fire chief in 2004. A visitor recalls his offices in the Norwalk Fire Department headquarters were filled with trophies and award certificates from fire-fighting departments and groups around the country. Anderson, the first black fireman for the city of Norwalk, has so many credentials that he has been much in demand as a speaker on fire safety.

He has had a major impact on the training, supervision and overall improvement of the fire fighters within the department under his command since attaining the rank of a captain in 1977. Training director for new recruits, he is certified by the State of Connecticut as instructor in all phases of fire fighting. He was instrumental in formulating Affirmative Action programs for the fire department of Norwalk. Those programs are required by Uncle Sam to insure equal opportunities for employment regardless of age, sex or race.

Anderson, since 1982, has been certified by the Hurst Rescue Tool program, teaching and overseeing the "Jaws of Life" operation that frees people from vehicles by cutting away car or truck parts that imprison them at accident scenes. He served as Disaster Drill Incident Commander upon numerous occasions during his tenure with the Norwalk Fire Department, where he was also a member of the Arson Investigation team. He holds EMT certification, as well as CPR and First Aid accreditation by the Red Cross.

In addition, Anderson is involved in continuing education with the National Fire Academy. He holds degrees in business administration from Norwalk Community College and a credential from the Connecticut Technical School in the art of firefighting. And judging from the answering machine at his home, Anderson also is a God-fearin' man. The voice asking a caller to leave a message ends with

"God bless you."