Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Conn.
(TNS)
Aug. 22—WALLINGFORD — The town has has selected a Stratford deputy fire chief as it’s new fire chief, ending a four month search.
James Buck, a career firefighter of 30 years, will be heading the department starting Thursday. Buck worked at the Bridgeport Fire Department from 1994 until 2022 when he retired to serve as deputy chief of operations in Stratford. He has also been the emergency management director for the town of North Branford since 2015.
Buck is a member of the North Haven Fire Volunteer Committee and the North Haven Fire Pension Board. For the last 10 years, he has been serving on the state’s Department of Emergency Management and Homeland Security Region 2 Steering Committee.
“Mr. Buck brings a great deal of experience and enthusiasm to lead the Fire Department,” said Mayor Vincent Cervoni. “We are excited for the department members and the residents of Wallingford.”
He will be replacing Joseph Czentnar, who retired in April after 32 years at the department. Czentnar began his career around the same time as Buck, starting at the North Branford Fire Department in 1992. A certified EMT, he was responsible for leading the initiative to build out the town’s municipal EMT service, serving a three-year tenure as chief, starting in 2021.
Officials said Buck is the right person to head the department, given his experience and qualifications.
“He has an excellent reputation in the area. With some of the internal issues we have with the fire department right now I think it was wise for the mayor to go out of town to find a chief,” said Town Council Chair Joseph Marrone.
The issues Marrone mentioned were raised in May after Czentnar retired, with the town council having lingering concerns about the department’s management and operations after losing two chiefs in what they said was a relatively short span of time.
During the last council meeting on Tuesday, the council unanimously approved a request for proposal to bring in a third-party firm to investigate the culture of the department related to labor relations and management, hoping to diagnose the issues regarding staff retention.
Buck will be coming into his position in light of the ongoing investigation. Marrone and other councilors expressed hope that they could build a collaborative relationship with Buck to see the investigation proceed and the department improve under his leadership.
___
(c)2024 Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Conn.
Visit Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Conn. at www.journalinquirer.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
