Fire Department seeks recruits

As it seeks volunteers, The Rockville Centre Fire Department’s Defender Hose Company No. 1 welcomed residents into its firehouse on South Centre Avenue to encourage recruitment and conduct drills for the visitors.

As part of the statewide RecruitNY Weekend, Capt. Mark Bedson and his fellow volunteers showed newcomers what they could expect if they joined the company. The recruitment initiative started by the Firefighters Association of the State of New York is meant to help departments add younger members to learn from experienced firefighters by providing banners, social media graphics, brochures and more to local firehouses.

Defender added a personal touch by having volunteers and Junior Fire Department members go door to door on the south side of the village to talk to residents about joining.

The department offers volunteers tuition at Nassau Community College in addition to their firefighting training.

Recently promoted 1st Lt. Andrew Krahm led drills with the Junior Fire Department throughout the afternoon, in the hope of inspiring some of the young attendees to join in the future. Krahm, 26, showed junior members how to attach a hose to a fire hydrant, how to put out an oven fire and how to operate the fire truck’s deck gun.

Krahm said he was proud of his place in Defender, a company in which his father, Charlie, has volunteered for nearly 45 years. Andrew is now in his ninth year there. “I’ve been around here all my life, since I was a kid,” he said. “As far as I’m concerned, it’s a home away from home.”

Krahm also served as the junior department’s first captain when the program started 10 years ago. Today he helps his father as an adviser for the junior volunteers, who they hope will join the department when they turn 18.

Teens who go through the junior department are often a great help to the RVCFD companies or they join. They finish the program with a reputation for being well prepared because of practice drills like the ones they ran in full gear last Sunday, Krahm said. “That’s something we really preach here at Defenders,” he said. “We focus on training, and practicing how we operate and operating how we practice. For me as an officer, it’s a good base to draw from.”

Kenny Albrect, 16, is the current captain of the juniors. He and his second lieutenant, Chris Lucchessi, 17, ran through drills and learned from the Krahms and other volunteers on Sunday. Albrect is a third-generation junior, and Lucchessi is the first member of his family to join.

Lucchessi, who comes from a law enforcement family, opted for the Fire Department after attending an open house similar to last weekend’s three years ago. “Joining the juniors definitely gives you a firsthand look so you can ask yourself, do I really want to be a firefighter or EMT?” Lucchessi said. “It definitely helps you figure [out] your future.”

Albrect and Lucchessi, who are entering their fourth and second years in the juniors, respectively, help prepare new members by conducting drills and leading schooling at their monthly meetings.

Defender and the RVCFD’s six other companies played a vital role in taming the inferno at the abandoned La-Z-Boy store on Sunrise Highway caused by a gasoline tanker crash on Feb. 16. Defender was there throughout the night, mixing foam with water to help quell the gasoline fire.

“We work hard, the training was there, and everybody went home safe,” Bedson said.

James Avondet, the recently re-elected chief of the department, also came to the company event. Avondet said that Defender was looking to add two to four more volunteers. “It’s a large commitment,” he said. “You need to be dedicated, and there’s some schooling involved. There are some things you need to learn, and to make sure you have the commitment, time and family support to get it done.”

The 328-member RVCFD is the largest volunteer department in New York state.

Anyone interested in volunteering can visit Defender’s firehouse, at 39 South Centre Ave., on Thursday nights or Sunday mornings, or call the RVCFD’s non-emergency line, (516) 678-9274.