Briarcliff FD Names New Chief, Preps for Open House

Longtime Briarcliff Manor Fire Department member and officer Robert O'Hanlon, who most recently served as first assistant chief, has been elected chief.

"I have been a member of the department for 13 years. I joined in December of 2000, " he said. "I have been in an officer in various positions for the last 10 years."

During the department's election on April 4, Dennis Reilly became first assistant chief and Mike Garcia was sworn in as second assistant chief.

Michael King became a deputy chief again after serving as department chief for two years.

O'Hanlon said he has always been interested in getting involved in the administrative end of the department and now as chief, he will be overseeing everything from equipment purchases to having "full control" at the scene of fires—"the whole nine yards. It's like running a company."

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For O'Hanlon, giving back in the volunteer department is something he enjoys doing. It's also part of his family history.

"My father was a firefighter in the New York City department back in '59 to '73," he revealed.

And once O'Hanlon moved to Briarcliff Manor, he said his predecessor is the one who got him involved.

"Actually, Mike King is the guy that brought me in," he said. "It's a nice kind of symmetry."

One of the first projects O'Hanlon will be tackling as chief is the the department's second annual recruiting open house, scheduled for Saturday, April 27 from 12 to 4 p.m.

Check out photos and video from last year's open house here.

"This is to primarily try and draw new members into the fire department from our surrounding village...mainly because keeping membership up is probably most of the important things we can do," he explained. "We want to remain a volunteer fire department."

Lately, recruiting and retaining members has been more difficult, O'Hanlon said, with locals facing economic challenges.

"Work is becoming more of a priority so bringing in members, getting them trained and doing the various functions and getting involved is an important part of all our functions here," he said.

The department currently has approximately 130 members, of which 95 are active.

"Today, we have a wide range of people," he said. "We have lawyers, we have doctors; me, I'm a contractor. There's a whole variety of people who joined and participate."

The open house is part of a statewide RecruitNY effort that falls during National Volunteer Week.

"We are going to offer a number of various things here," O'Hanlon said. "We are going to show apparatus—they can get into it, see what we do, see what we ride. We are going to have people be able to put on gear, feel what it's like. We are going to show them how to operate a hose-line. We are going to do an extraction drill where we will cut up a car."

The Volunteer Ambulance Corps will also be involved during the open house, demonstrating "how to backboard a person, how to move a person around when they have been in a car accident," he continued.

And even if attendees don't end up joining, there will be tours of the station open to the public and food to enjoy. Plus, locals might pick up some useful safety information.

"We are going to teach people how to use a fire extinguisher. We will show them how to use it properly because sometimes you can make it worse if you do it wrong," he said. "It should be a fun day."