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About the Department
Message from the Chief
The Hamden Fire Department strives to deliver the best and most professional emergency services in the areas of fire prevention, fire suppression, paramedic EMS response, and technical rescue. Our mission statement is driven by the responsibility to provide life safety protection and conservation of property to an engaged and diverse community.
As both the Fire Chief and Emergency Management Director, I view our department as community driven critical infrastructure. We will work daily to maintain the public trust and hold ourselves to the highest possible professional standards. Our officers and firefighters remain committed to a rigorous and comprehensive training schedule designed to prepare our responders to meet the challenges of modern firefighting and emergency response.
We are committed to emergency preparedness, mitigation, response and recovery to build a more resilient community!
Our personnel are enthusiastic about community outreach, providing education and awareness of risk reduction and fire safety throughout our town. Hamden residents and visitors to our town are always encouraged to stop by our neighborhood fire stations.
Thank you for your continued support as we take great pride in our profession and the services we provide. Public safety is the fabric of our community that we are grateful to be a large part of.
Stay Safe.
Jeffrey G. Naples
Fire Chief / EMD
Mission
"The mission of the Hamden Fire Department is to protect lives and property from fire and hazardous conditions through education, code enforcement, and effective emergency response. We will deliver emergency medical care in a compassionate professional manner and treat all persons with dignity and respect. We will maintain the public's trust through teamwork, appreciation of diversity, efficiency and ethical decision making. Our most valuable assets are our firefighters as they strive for excellence in service to our community."
-Gary P. Merwede, Chief of Department
Philosophy
Pride
The department's success relies upon the strength of its members. Pride and emergency services go hand in hand. Pride is instilled in each member through training, mentoring, discipline, and the sheer love of the job. Hamden enjoys the luxury of operating a combination fire department. Both career and volunteer members share a common goal and are rich in history.
Tradition
Tradition in the fire service is the fabric that ties our members together. This is evident with both our career and volunteer members. We will continue to instill our traditional values to our new members while remaining cognizant of the challenges of the future.
Professionalism
Our departments professional demeanor, appearance, and actions will remain steadfast. Members of the department will portray themselves in a professional manner at all times both on and off duty. We will strive to treat each member of the community we serve in a professional manner. All members must be accountable for their actions and maintain their professionalism. Remaining consistent with the department's mission statement of placing the safety of the public first is paramount.