The Fire Department serves and protects the lives, property and interests of the citizens and proprietors of the City of Peekskill.

Department Make-Up
The department has approximately two hundred volunteers and twenty-four career firefighters. We operate five engines, one aerial platform, two paramedic fly cars and one utility vehicle. The Department has three Chiefs, six Captains, six First Lieutenants, six Second Lieutenants, twelve trustees, one career Supervisor, four Assistant Shift Supervisors, and one Municipal Training Officer. The Department also has several committee chairpersons who are responsible for special assignments. There are six Fire Companies in The City of Peekskill, Columbian Engine Co. # 1, Cortlandt Hook & Ladder Co. #1, Washington Engine Co. #2, Columbian Hose Co. #1, Centennial Hose Co. #4, and the Peekskill Fire Patrol.

Chiefs: The Chief of the department is Lenny Varella Jr., the First Assistant Chief is Robert Fiorio Sr., and the Second Assistant Chief is Vinny Malaspina. The Chief and his assistants are responsible for all daily operations of the department. The responsibilities include but are not limited to firefighting, purchasing, reporting, staffing, maintenance and public relations.

Captains: There are two Department Captains.Patrick MacLennan and Kevin Ferris. The Captains are responsible for their assigned company apparatus, buildings, reports,  Lieutenants and active membership. The Captains are responsible for leading attack teams and/or vent teams into hazardous scenes, be it structure fires, brush fires or other emergencies.

First Lieutenant: There are three Department Lieutenants. John Rose, Tyrone Gerald and Ed Williams. The First Lieutenants are in charge in the absence of the Captain. The First Lieutenant may have to oversee training sessions, attend meetings, complete reports etc. as required. The First Lieutenant may also have to lead teams into fires and/or emergency scenes.

Second Lieutenants: The Second Lieutenants are responsible for checking all equipment on their assigned apparatus. He or She is also responsible for submitting weekly equipment reports and filling air bottles that are below standard. The Second Lieutenants are also responsible to be at their apparatus during an emergency to keep track of all equipment being used during the event.

Trustees: The departments Trustees are the law governing body of the department. They are responsible for monitoring and enforcing OSHA regulations and the fire department charter. They are responsible for the department�s awards program and the updating of information.

Municipal Training Officer: The Municipal Training Officer is Frank Pugliese, who is responsible for setting up the one hundred hour, State mandated training program for the career staff. He is also responsible for registering the career firefighters for training at County or State facilities. The MTO must record and report all training to the City and State.

Fire Police: The Fire Department has a Fire Police unit with one Captain and two Lieutenants. The members of the Fire Police respond every time there is a fire alarm and have the responsibilities for traffic control, crowd control and securing the fire scene. The unit also assists the Police Department during special events, traffic accidents and other emergencies.

Boat Team: This team responds to emergencies on the river and works with the Police Department during special events at our riverfront. The Boat Team Captain is Pat Matwijec who is in charge of maintaining the boat and its equipment.

Training Committee: The chairman of the Training Committee is James Sniffen, who is responsible for setting up and administrating department drills and training sessions for the volunteer staff. He schedules OSHA classes and reports on all training to the departments
Chiefs, Officers and Trustees.

Fire Prevention Committee: The Chairman of the Fire Prevention is Captain Sheridan. She is responsible for setting up talks, demonstrations, and other related community sessions. He is also responsible for setting up the annual School Fire Drills and building pre-plans.

July 4th Committee: The chairperson for the July 4th Parade and Celebration is Sue Sheridan. She is responsible for fundraising, contracting bands, inviting organizations, contracting fireworks company, supplying refreshments, setting the line up for the parade and a lot more. The committee is set up with members from each of our six fire companies and a lot of time and hard work goes into preparing this event.

EMS: The Department has seven, Emergency Medical Technicians and eight Paramedics on its career staff. These members run back up to the Peekskill Community Volunteer Corps. and to the Cortlandt Regional Paramedic program. Our EMTs and Paramedics respond to a large number of medical calls in our community and are a great value to Peekskill and our surrounding communities.

Peekskill is a vital part of the Westchester County Mutual Aid System. Peekskill has responded to Croton, Ossining, Lake Mohegan, Buchanan, Continental Village, Garrison and other communities who requested our assistance.

Peekskill operates a highly trained FAST response team. This team will be called into other communities during structure fires. The sole responsibility of this team is to search and rescue down or troubled firefighters. The team has been in operation since July 2002 and is under the direction of Deputy Chief James Howard.

The members of the Peekskill Fire Department are all very dedicated individuals who put their lives on the line for our community each and every time the alarm sounds. Many with no compensation give an enormous amount of time and energy to our City. Peekskill has a combination department, which is versatile and well trained. The department continues to prove its value to the community daily, whether it be fighting fires, performing building inspections, teaching fire prevention or organizing our July 4th Parade and celebration. The volunteer and career members working together are why Peekskill is recognized around the State.