Published: 09/26/2022 13:18:27
Modified: 09/26/2022 13:17:38
TURNERS FALLS — Dozens celebrated Turners Falls Fire Chief Todd Brunelle and Captain Trisha Dana during a swearing-in ceremony at the station Saturday morning.
The ceremony, which began at 10:30 a.m., was attended by loved ones, area fire chiefs and the entire Turners Falls Fire Department. Cake and apple cider accompanied the conversation after Brunelle and Dana were officially sworn in.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for two wonderful people to be promoted and further their careers as firefighters,” said Acting Deputy Chief Kyle Cogswell.
Dana, who was sworn in first, joined the Turners Falls Fire Department as a call-in firefighter in 2001 before becoming full-time a decade ago. She began serving as captain on April 17.
Embracing a newfound consistency after a pair of maternity leaves and the responsibilities of being a single mother split her career into segments, Dana said her promotion was timely.
“It was just the moment,” Dana said. “Family comes first for me, but also, the fire service is kind of a family-oriented career.”
Brunelle began his service with the department as an on-call firefighter in 1997 before joining the career force in 2000, becoming a captain in 2012 and officially beginning his service as chief in late June. He explained that while he didn’t initially apply to be chef after Brian McCarthy resigned on May 7, he started thinking about it more once he started taking the job.
“I would say part of (deciding I wanted the job) was getting a taste of what it’s like,” Brunelle said. “Being able to know how good the staff are, I knew I wanted to be part of that leadership.”
As head of the department, Brunelle said he will promote practices that primarily develop safety and education. This, he said, involves “maintaining constant daily preparedness” and “keeping (firefighters) safe and well-trained so they can protect residents’ lives and property.”
“The team that works here full time does an amazing job,” said Brunelle. “What I would like to do is help them improve what they are doing.”
Dana said she and Brunelle were so “invested in making this place a better place” because of the satisfaction of helping the community.
“We are a very small department, but the staff goes above and beyond…and because of that, the community takes care of us and watches over us,” she said.
Brunelle said another of his goals will be to educate the public about how the landscape of firefighting has changed over time. For example, he said firefighters are responding to a wider range of emergencies than ever before.
“What I would like to do in the future is raise awareness of what work is. Fighting fires today and the dangers and responsibilities of firefighters are a night and day difference from what they were 40 or 50 years ago,” Brunelle explained. “When I started here full time, I was probably getting 400 to 500 calls a year. These days we probably get 1,600 calls a year. … Anything wrong, people call the fire department.
Although residents are asking firefighters to respond to more emergencies than before, constantly having familiar faces around town can make dire days a little less stressful, Brunelle said.
“When we get these calls and take service,” he said, “they’re having one of their worst days, but they recognize us.”
Reach Julian Mendoza at 413-772-0261, ext. 261 or jmendoza@recorder.com.
