He's the 100th chief of the Valley Stream Fire Department. This is his first order of business.

Since childhood, Anthony Capone felt destined to storm into burning buildings in firefighter gear. Since he was 15 years old, he has eyed the top spot of Valley Stream fire chief. Last month, Capone, of Engine Company No. 2, accomplished what he has long envisioned: etching his name in village history as the 100th chief of the Valley Stream Volunteer Fire Department.

The Takeaway

• Lifelong resident and Valley Stream South High School graduate, Anthony Capone, fulfills his childhood dream by becoming the 100th chief of the Valley Stream Volunteer Fire Department.
• Capone inherits the role amidst regional firefighter shortages and the aging out of volunteer firefighters. He emphasizes the urgent need for recruitment and retention efforts to bolster the department's ranks 
•  Recognizing the need for a new generation of physically fit volunteers, Capone launches recruitment initiatives and assembles a recruitment committee. The department's efforts include outreach at high schools and social media promotion.

After two years under former Chief Patrick Scanlon, in which Capone served as his 1st assistant chief, the 30-year-old lifelong resident, a Valley Stream South High School graduate, was sworn in as Scanlon’s successor on April 4. Standing at his side as 1st assistant chief is Michael Colucci, of Engine Company No. 4, and his 2nd assistant chief is Kyle O’Brien, of Truck 1. Firefighting runs in the family, noted Capone, who is the latest in a dynastic line of fire chiefs.

“My stepfather was an ex-chief of the fire department,” said Capone.“His brother was an ex-chief and so was their father before them.”

The biggest, the busiest, and the best

Respected, charismatic, and knowledgeable, Capone is young and energetic, qualities that bode well with fresh-faced volunteers and, bearing the weight of experience, feels quite at home with the department’s senior crowd.

Much like his past few predecessors, Capone is inheriting outsized challenges. Amid a regional shortfall of firefighters and with local volunteers aging out, departments across Long Island are reeling from the reality of being understaffed.

Capone says while the department isn’t experiencing a deficit, it’s feeling the pressure to bolster its ranks with new blood sooner rather than later.

“The one thing that I want to make sure that I work on now is recruitment and retention,” said Capone. “Volunteer firefighters are dwindling, and we need people now more than ever.”

In Nassau County, the number of volunteer firefighters has dropped from over 10,000 after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks to 6,178 volunteers. Fire officials say there aren’t enough fire crews to adequately take care of its 1.4 million residents.

In Valley Stream, the fire department, all of the roughly 450 volunteers, not only serves the village’s 42,000 residents but responds to a high volume of calls from neighboring communities. Of the 179 fire departments on Long Island, “as far as fire calls and fire responses, we are one of the biggest, the busiest, and the best,” said Capone. “That comes with a lot of responsibility.”

Young firefighters wanted - badly

Capone is especially mindful of the particular need for a new pool of physically fit volunteers to serve as interior firefighters. He estimates roughly 150 volunteers are willing and able to race into buildings to quelch flames.

“Members who’ve been in the department for 50, 60 years won’t be the ones running in at this point,” said Capone, who knows full well that having him as the face of the department could provide much-needed leverage in getting younger volunteers to join. “My job is to bridge the gap between the middle-of-the-road and older members and the younger members.”

To counter this foreboding gap, Capone has assembled a recruitment committee. Thanks to their outreach efforts, including at a high school, the department has seen a modest bump in recruitment.

“So far this month, we have 16 people, and I’m going to hit the ground running in making this appealing for younger people that live in the town,” said Capone.

To that end, the department is even dipping its toes into social media. It recently posted a promotional Facebook reel showing a montage of adrenaline-pumping action clips and images of firefighters against a thumping techno beat. The caption, nevertheless, is a bit more sobering highlighting a long list of practical benefits and perks that come with the job like free community college tuition, property tax exemptions, service pensions, and even a free gym membership.

Why recruits are hard to come by?

Fire officials have not pointed to a single cause for their recruiting struggles. Rather they say there are multiple issues discouraging young people from signing up even when the interest is there.

And the interest is certainly there, according to Nassau County Fire Marshal Michael Uttaro, but there are competing forces at play.

Saddled with affordable housing insecurity and working multiple jobs to afford the Island’s high cost of living, young people often can’t commit to the time-intensive nature of the job.

With Long Island’s increasing demographic diversity, fire officials also noted the need to make their ranks more reflective of the population and find ways to broaden their appeal.

“We need to do better and connect more with the communities we serve,” Uttaro said

But Capone says camaraderie isn’t a problem in his department and he intends to hammer home that message.

“When you join the fire department, you get an extended family,” he said. “No judgment. We have all walks of life, races, ethnicities. Forget it. You join here, these are your brothers (and sisters) that you crawl down a hallway with.”

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