Fire department names new deputy chief
By Becky Robinette Wright CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The Honor Guard presents the flags during a promotion ceremony for Chesterfield Fire and Emergency Medical Services last week.

The retirement doors have been swinging with a steady beat for Chesterfield Fire and Emergency Medical Services, creating many vacancies and the need for promotions to fill those openings. The latest wave of promotions came last week when Fire Chief Paul Mauger named Division Commander Mark Sacra as the county's new deputy chief.

"Mark and I served as firefighters together in the late 70s while stationed in Ettrick," explained Mauger. "I have enjoyed our working relationship and admire his work ethic. It was an honor to promote him to the position of deputy chief."

Even those peers who Sacra competed against for the position were complimentary and supportive of the decision, continued Mauger.

"Mark does not say much, but I have learned to listen when he does," Mauger said solemnly. "He is a voice of reason and has a well-balanced perspective on the dynamics of our organization and our members."

Sacra

Sacra is no stranger to fire and rescue services. His involvement began in September 1978 when he became a volunteer firefighter in Harrisonburg. He is a lifetime member of the Hopewell Emergency Crew, having actively served with them for 12 years.

On July 16, 1979, Sacra joined the Chesterfield Fire Department and began serving at Dale Station #11. At the time, Sacra's abilities were unique to firefighters, because he was already a certified emergency medical technician (EMT).

"When I was hired," said Sacra, "even as a probationary firefighter, I was treated like a king by the other shift members. The reason was that I was an EMT and enjoyed that kind of work [experience with a volunteer rescue squad]. The shift looked for me to do the patient care. At that time, we only went on the really bad calls or when the ambulances were significantly delayed. Today, of course, we have 24-hour transport units staffed out of fire stations, all of our members are EMT-B at a minimum and we are providing ALS (Advanced Life Support) training on the job through our daytime EMT-I school. The hiring of a full-time operational medical director was quite a leap for the organization and reinforced our commitment to the EMS role. Revenue recovery has allowed us to do a lot of positive things for the citizens that the general budget would have never funded."

The seasoned firefighter has had many harrowing experiences, but he remembers two in particular.

"My first fatal fire stands out," Sacra said. "[It] was a house fire that resulted in a little girl's death. I was the one who located the little girl during the search operation. Having been on the job about 13 months, this drove home the fact that there was a downside to this job. It also reinforced the need to be proficient at the basic skills as time was of the essence on these calls."

"A second call that I will mention," continued Sacra, "is the Franklin Street fire in Petersburg. I was the operator on Truck 12 that night, and we responded to assist Petersburg with a structural fire and gas explosion. A member of Petersburg Fire Department died in that incident as a result of a wall collapse. Several others received serious injuries. This call was a dramatic reminder of how dangerous and unpredictable the job could be."

Advances in technology have been both a change and a challenge for the department, which Sacra has seen firsthand.

Computers were only beginning to creep into the stations up until the late 80s, explains Sacra. "During the six years [1990-96] that I was in the training division, computers were introduced to the stations, and fire reports were actually entered on the computer. Today, there are two county-owned computers in each station with all reports submitted online. However, that brings with it the challenge to find funding to keep this equipment reasonably current."

Sacra is a native of Hopewell and a graduate of Hopewell High School. He holds an associate's degree in fire science from J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College and is a graduate of the National Fire Academy's Executive Fire Officer Program.

Sacra's promotion became official last week during a ceremony at the Eanes-Pittman Public Safety Training Center. Additional promotions within the department were also recognized. They include: Katherine C. Duke to senior automation analyst; Firefighter Rodney C. Duke to lieutenant; Firefighter Gary G. Griffiths Jr. to lieutenant; Firefighter David S. Harrelson to lieutenant; Firefighter John T. Horansky to lieutenant; Firefighter William G. Marsiglio III to lieutenant; firefighter Joy R. Schools to lieutenant; Firefighter Gray H. Smith to lieutenant; Firefighter Stephen P. Smith to lieutenant; Firefighter Albert S. Thompson III to lieutenant; Lieutenant Robert B. McLean to captain; Lieutenant Kurt Mueller to captain; Lieutenant Vincent A. Urquhart to captain; Captain Christopher G. Basdikis to battalion chief; Captain Stuart D. Dalton to battalion chief; and Captain Gregory A. McCarraher to battalion chief.

The guest speaker at the ceremony was Col. Steven Flaherty, superintendent of the Virginia State Police. Comments were provided by Matoaca District Supervisor Marleen Durfee, County Administrator Jay Stegmaier and Mauger.