Danbury fire chief urges council to add delegation clause to proposed intrastate mutual aid compact

Danbury — Fire Chief Jeff Harold told the City Council on Monday that the city's proposed intrastate mutual aid compact should explicitly provide a delegation mechanism so that emergency decisions can proceed if the mayor is unavailable.

"I think the language should include perhaps something along the lines of a duly appointed, you know, representative of the mayor," Harold said, suggesting the ordinance name an automatic fallback such as the emergency management director, the fire chief or police chief to act "in the event we needed help."

Harold identified himself as a longtime local official who had worked on earlier drafts of mutual-aid language and said clearer delegation would make emergency response "simpler and easier and quicker." He referenced recent high-profile incidents in California to underscore the importance of robust mutual-aid arrangements.

The mayor's availability and formal authorization were the specific concern: Harold recommended the ordinance include wording so authority "devolves automatically" to a designated representative if the mayor cannot be reached, rather than relying on ad hoc officials or uncertain communications during a major incident.

No council response to the recommendation is recorded in the public-comment portion; the public hearing was closed by voice vote after other items were addressed and the council recessed for a committee-of-the-whole session where the posted agenda items will be reviewed further.