Henry Kydd Sworn In As Deputy Fire Chief [VIDEO]

The will have its first deputy fire chief in eight years after Henry Kydd was officially sworn into the position on Friday.

Kydd, 59, has been with the department for 33 years. Mayor Daryl Finizio and swore Kydd in at a ceremony outside the department’s .

Kydd thanked his family and fellow firefighters for their support.

“I’m honored,” Kydd said. “It’s something that I didn’t think was going to happen.”

Kydd served as a firefighter/EMT for his first eight years of the department and was a lieutenant for the next eight years. He has spent the past 17 years as a batallion chief.

Finizio said Fire Chief Ron Samul advised him that the deputy chief’s position, which has remained vacant in recent budget cycles, would be an important one to fill prior to Samul’s intended retirement in April of 2013. Finizio thanked members of the City Council, who in this fiscal year.

“I am very confident that he will do what he has done for the past 33 years, which is to bring honor to this department and the city of New London,” said Finizio.

Michael Passero, president of the City Council and a firefighter, described Kydd as a key part of the department’s leadership.

“He deserves a great deal of the credit along with the other leaders in the department for what we’ve achieved,” said Passero. “And it’s been my personal pleasure to serve with him for 28 years.”

Wade Hyslop, president pro tempore of the City Council and chairman of the council’s public safety committee, said he personally knows Kydd and his family. He congratulated Kydd as well as the fire department as a whole.

““I can never say enough about our fire department,” said Hyslop. “We have an A-1 fire department here in New London.”

Henry Kydd III, Kydd’s son, said the family has been in the city for almost a century.

“I’m just excited for my dad, because he’s served the city for 33 years,” he said. “I’ve grown up seeing him come up through the ranks, and I’m just glad he’s being recognized for all his hard work.”

Kydd said the duties of the deputy chief will include overseeing day to day operations, coordinating with mechanical maintenance, and labor relations. He will begin serving in this capacity on Monday.

“I’m a little nervous about it,” he said. “It’s a big step.”

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