For the first time in its history, Bensalem Township appointed a career fire chief.
Last Monday afternoon, Mark Antozzeski was sworn in by Mayor Joe DiGirolamo and, that evening, made an appearance at the Bensalem Council meeting to officially greet the public. Antozzeski will oversee the paid Bensalem Fire Rescue, as well as the township’s six volunteer fire departments: Eddington, Cornwells, Nottingham, Newport, Union and Trevose.
“I think there’s a great opportunity here for myself, for the citizens, for the council and for the township as a whole, and I appreciate you having trust in me coming here,” said Antozzeski. “And believe me, I take it to heart that being the first career chief in charge of the career staff and the volunteers is a huge undertaking, and I appreciate being selected for this position.”
Antozzeski holds a bachelor’s degree in fire science and a master’s degree in emergency management and has completed the Executive Fire Officer Program with the National Fire Academy.
In addition to serving as a firefighter and sergeant with the U.S. Air Force at the McGuire Air Force Base, Antozzeski spent 30 years with the Hamilton Fire Department in New Jersey. Of those three decades, two were as fire chief. Most recently, he served as fire chief in Middletown Township.
“This is a historic moment for Bensalem Township,” said director of public safety Bill McVey. “This process was a very extensive one that was led by the mayor and my office, as well as with the deputy director and volunteer fire companies, some input from them as well as to why we needed this moving the fire services forward in Bensalem Township.”
The appointment of Antozzeski is the first step in consolidating Bensalem’s fire services. For some time, McVey has been in talks with the six volunteer companies about uniting, as they’re struggling to produce enough manpower to keep the community safe as independent entities. All would maintain their individual identities; they’d just be under one umbrella.
McVey also expressed his wish in November 2023 to hire four additional full-time, paid career firefighters if the township is awarded a SAFER (Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response) grant through FEMA. During a council meeting that month, a number of volunteer firefighters voiced their support of the idea.
Volunteers are also expressing their support of Antozzeski’s appointment.
Eddington Fire Company said in a statement, “The officers and members of the Eddington Fire Company would like to welcome and congratulate Mark Antozzeski as he was sworn in today as the 1st Chief of our newly formed organization of the Bensalem Township Volunteer Fire Department.”
Nottingham Fire Department said, “Congratulations Chief. We at NFD are excited as to what the future holds.”
Additionally, council members gave Antozzeski a hearty welcome.
Michelle Benitez said, “We’re very excited to have you. It’s a pleasure to meet you, and I look forward to what you’re going to do with our township.”
President Ed Kisselback said, “It’s been a long time coming. It’s something we’ve been working on for several years, our director and deputy director, as well as the mayor, and council being in the background of this. But still, it’s something that we all know has to be done for the safety of our citizens of Bensalem, and we’re so happy that you’re going to be part of our team.”
Samantha Bambino can be reached at sbambino@newspapermediagroup.com
