Two young firefighters follow in steps of fallen peer
Young volunteers Cameron Hazlett and Joe Yannuzzi are devoted to the fire service.
At 15, Hazlett has been a junior member of the Chester Heights Fire Co. since Nov. 16, 2015 – a little more than a month after he turned 14 and became eligible for the position.
Yannuzzi, 16, joined the Brookhaven Fire Department as a junior firefighter in December 2016, about a year after his father died.
“I just wanted to help people out,” said Yannuzzi, an Upland resident who is home schooled.
An Aston resident and freshman at Sun Valley High School, Hazlett grew up going to the firehouse with his dad, helping to clean equipment and trucks and eager to become a junior firefighter. Though he doesn’t remember exactly when he first heard about the late Christopher Kangas, he remembers his reaction.
“I heard about the junior firefighter who was killed and remember thinking, ‘Wow.’ I was kind of shocked at what happened,” Hazlett said.
Next month will mark the 15th anniversary of Kangas’ death. A junior member of the Brookhaven Fire Department, Kangas was struck and killed by a car while bicycling to the station in response to a fire call on the evening of May 5, 2002. He was 14.
Brookhaven Fire Chief Robert Montella has kept the promise he made after Kangas’ passing that the young boy’s ultimate sacrifice would not be forgotten by him, or the department he served.
Last month, Yannuzzi was presented the Chris Kangas Junior Firefighter of the Year Award by the Brookhaven Fire Department at its annual awards banquet on March 25 at the Austin Room in Upper Chichester. With Montella standing close by, the presentation was made by Ryan Jackson, who oversees the department junior firefighter program.
“He was voted by the membership,” Montella said of Yannuzzi. “The kid has a heart of gold … He’s got that drive, he wants to learn
and he wants to be good at what he does. He’s an asset to the department.”
That same night, March 25, Hazlett was presented with the Christopher N. Kangas Memorial Junior Firefighter of the Year Award at the Delaware County Firemen Association’s 111th anniversary awards banquet at the Springfield County Club. The presentation was made by board Chairperson Judy Kirby and Chief Fire Marshal John Lloyd to a standing ovation.
In the audience were Hazlett’s parents — father Rob, who is the assistant fire chief of the Chester Heights Fire Co., and his mother Donna, who retired from her position as an EMT in Media about the time Cameron was born.
Hearing their names called came as a surprise to both award recipients.
The young Hazlett said he’s not in the fire service to gain accolades, but he was pleased by the honor and appreciates that Chester Heights Fire Chief Dan Iannucci Jr. nominated him.
With nearly 18 months of service under his helmet, Hazlett said he understands and appreciates Kangas’ obvious dedication to the job, and the love he felt for his fellow members. Hazlett feels the same way.
When people ask him why he spends so much time doing work for free, Hazlett typically responds,
“It’s what I love to do.”
Yannuzzi said he keeps Kangas in mind every time he responds to a fire.
On his Facebook page, Yannuzzi recently posted, “The best decision I ever made was joining the firehouse in Brookhaven.”
Looking ahead, both Yannuzzi and Hazlett said they plan to stay involved in the fire service.
Yannuzzi said he would also like to be an EMT when he turns 18.
Hazlett is one of two junior firefighters with Chester Heights, and Yannuzzi is one of seven in Brookhaven.
As juniors, Montella said they play a crucial role at fire scenes. They are not permitted to enter burning buildings, and their time at the firehouse is restricted and monitored.
In Yannuzzi’s case, Montella said his role can range from hooking up a hydrant to performing CPR.
“He’s been involved in saving lives,” he said.
The Parkside Police Department recently launched a new computer app for iPhone and Android devices designed for residents to download and easily connect with the police department.
The MyPD app has more than 40 potential features, which the department can turn on and off depending on what they wish to display.
The app is easy to use and has a sleek user interface.
“Members of the public can get important updates and alerts from us as push notifications,” Parkside Police Chief John Egan said. “We can send the notifications through Twitter or our dashboard and the user doesn’t need an account or to worry about missing an important tweet or message. We encourage users to opt in to notifications if they want to be informed quickly of new updates or alerts.”
The app includes resources and links on a number of topics, including victim resources, domestic violence, press releases, missing children, wanted persons, and many more. There are also four background screens to swipe and can be updated with pictures of wanted persons, missing people, or announcements.
Sending in tips about crimes or other quality-of-life issues is another way citizens can use the MyPD app. It allows the user to either attach their contact information or send it anonymously. Photos and GPS locations of incidents can also be attached from either the phones gallery or live camera.
While the app links to or integrates with some social media, police say it is not another social network. There are also no ads and
an account is not necessary to use MyPD.
“We have been using social media like Facebook along with our web page for a while,” Officer Mark Marchesi said. “The MyPD app is not meant to replace those or be another social network. It is a tool for citizens to keep on their phones so when they need a phone number, to send a crime tip, or want to research something, they have it readily available in an easy to use app on their smart phones.”
While the app is not a socialmedia platform, it does have some social aspects, such as a feature where users can “unlock” badges the more they use the app and interact with the police department.
“Basically the app user can climb in rank and unlock new badges,” Marchesi said. “We will build on this idea with future versions and find new ways to interact with our app users”
MyPD also allows users to share some basic anonymous data about their age, gender, or how they learned about the app. This is optional and if shared will help the department to better understand who is using the app, how they found it, and if they live or work in the borough.
MyPD is free for residents, contains no advertising, and users do not need to share personal information. Any information sharing is optional.
Citizens looking to connect with the Parkside Police should search for “MyPD” in their app store. Once downloaded and the agency chosen it will always open to the Parkside Police Department and its resources.
For additional information about the My Police Department app, users can visit ParksidePolice. com, Facebook.com/ParksidePD or MyPDapp.com.
Correspondent Loretta Rodgers contributed to this column.
Cop Shop occasionally appears on Thursday. To contact Rose Quinn, call 484-521-3154, email rquinn@21st-centurymedia.com or follow on Twitter @rquinndelco.