As the acting fire chief, I thought it was time to respond to the series of articles, blogs and political cartoons which have painted the Westbrook Fire Department in a poor light.
We have some internal challenges that we are working through. Our goal is to provide every employee with a safe, happy and rewarding place to work and to provide the citizens of Westbrook with the highest possible level of service. Internal investigations will be conducted competently, employees will be accorded their due-process rights as every citizen should be and all complaints will be adjudicated fairly.
Until that time, my hope is that the public will not generalize their condemnation, nor judge the professional men and women of the Westbrook Fire Department unfairly. Just in the last week your professional fire and emergency medical personnel have brought a new life into the world by delivering a newborn baby in the back of the ambulance; they have saved lives by administering Narcan, bringing overdose victims back from the brink of death; and they made a hazardous scene safe for an extremely vulnerable population at a large local medical facility.
The fire and emergency medical personnel in this city get less attention than they deserve for the important things they do. No cartoon, inflammatory caricature or negative generalization will prevent this outstanding group of men and women from being there when you need them.
Trust me, better days are coming!
William D. Baker
Acting Fire Chief
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