MAYOR GIULIANI AND FIRE COMMISSIONER VON ESSEN OFFICIATE AT GRADUATION CEREMONY FOR 72 PROBATIONARY FIREFIGHTERS
Also Swear-In New Deputy Commissioner, Three New Battalion Chiefs and 15 New Captains
Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani and Fire Commissioner Thomas Von Essen today presided over a graduation ceremony at Brooklyn College for 72 probationary New York City firefighters. The Mayor and Fire Commissioner also administered the oath of office to newly appointed Deputy Commissioner for Administration Thomas Fitzpatrick and 18 other recently promoted fire officers.
"It is my great pleasure to be here with you on your graduation day," Mayor Giuliani said. "All 72 of you are graduating into the greatest, proudest Fire Department in the world, a Department whose history is inseparable from the history of our City. Since the formation of the City's first volunteer company in 1648, the Fire Department has been renamed, reorganized and transformed, but the core of its mission to protect New Yorkers in their deepest moments of need has never changed. The Fire Department finds special people with the courage to do this job and then focuses and harnesses this courage into firefighting skill.
"Across the nation civilian fire deaths have been increasing, but in New York City just the opposite is happening," the Mayor continued. "In New York City, fire deaths have decreased by 22 percent since 1991 and are at their lowest levels since Robert Wagner was Mayor. We have been so successful because we have asked so much more of you and you have delivered.
"I want to congratulate today's graduates and the newly promoted fire officers. You have answered the call today and you will do so every time you put on the uniform. I know you will uphold the legacy of this great Department," the Mayor concluded.
Fire Commissioner Von Essen said, "It always gives me great pleasure to welcome new members into the Fire Department family. I find it especially gratifying to usher them in alongside these veteran firefighters and officers who, through dedication, hard work and endurance, are being promoted today."
Following their remarks, the Mayor and Fire Commissioner presented awards to the Academy's top graduates. The Valedictorian Certificate was awarded to Firefighter Edwin Burwell, the Salutatorian Certificate was awarded to Firefighter William Leahy and the Physical Fitness Certificate was presented to Firefighter Leonard Reina.
Today's graduates completed 13 weeks of training in firefighting, fire suppression techniques and the emergency medical procedures required under the Department's Certified First Responder-Defibrillation (CFR-D) program. The firefighters will be assigned to engine and ladder companies throughout the City and then their assignments will be rotated annually for the next three years to ensure that they are exposed to a variety of firefighting experiences.
Thomas Fitzpatrick, who was promoted today to Deputy Commissioner, is a graduate of Fordham University and a 29 year veteran of the Fire Department. He began his career at Ladder Company 38 in the Bronx and has since served in Ladder Company 4, and the elite Rescue Company 1 in Manhattan. He has served in the Marine Division and the Division of Training. He has also been a Senior Policy Advisor and an Executive Officer to the last three Fire Commissioners.
The following fire officers were promoted today to the following ranks:
| Lawrence Cleary | Battalion Chief | Daniel Keenan | Captain |
| Howard Hill | Battalion Chief | William O'Neill | Captain |
| Paul Ferro | Battalion Chief | Frank Hudec | Captain |
| John Henricksen | Captain | Emilio Longo | Captain |
| John Papadimitrious | Captain | Richard Meo | Captain |
| Justin Werner | Captain | Martin Monaghan | Captain |
| Paul Heglund | Captain | Denis Murphy | Captain |
| Brian Hickey | Captain | Gerard Cash | Captain |
| Thomas Howell | Captain | Anthony Campos | Captain |
Last week, Mayor Giuliani and Commissioner Von Essen announced that the number of civilian fire-related deaths in New York City in 1997 had reached a 38-year low. Last year's total of 145, and the 1996 total of 149, represent the lowest numbers of civilian fire-related deaths since 1959 when there were 124. Based on a preliminary survey of major U.S. cities, New York City had one of the lowest per capita rates of civilian fire-related deaths in 1997. New York City's civilian fire death rate of 2.0 per 100,000 residents is lower than fire death rates in Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Newark, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington D.C.
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