North Babylon fire department to undergo mandatory sensitivity training after video shows fire chief verbally abusing girl, official says
North Babylon Volunteer Fire Company Chief Peter Alt. Credit: North Babylon Volunteer Fire Com
The North Babylon Volunteer Fire Company must update its policies for dealing with minors and will require members to undergo mandatory sensitivity training after a video went viral this month of Fire Chief Peter Alt cursing and verbally abusing a minor during an emergency call, according to Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer.
The town, Schaffer said in a letter this week to the Rev. Saba Mchunguzi, president of the Central Long Island NAACP branch, has completed its investigation into the Aug. 4 incident in which Alt was seen on video using profane language at a minor who is heard whimpering on a gurney.
Schaffer, who declined an interview request, wrote that Alt's actions were "disturbing and unacceptable" and "lacked a standard of professionalism of a volunteer fireman."
Mandatory sensitive training
In response to the incident, Babylon will make several changes to its contractual requirements with the volunteer fire department, which provides EMS and fire protection services for the town, when it's up for renewal in December, Schaffer said.
WHAT NEWSDAY FOUND
- The North Babylon Volunteer Fire Company must update its procedures for dealing with minors and will require members to undergo mandatory sensitivity training after a video went viral of Fire Chief Peter Alt cursing at a minor during an emergency call, officials said.
- The Town of Babylon has completed its investigation of the Aug. 4 incident in which Alt was seen on cellphone video using profane language at a minor who is heard whimpering on a gurney, according to Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer.
- Alt, a member of the fire company for 22 years, has been relieved of his duties, according to the department's executive board, while he's also been "withheld from duty" from his job as a conductor with the LIRR, officials said.
They include mandatory sensitivity training for all members of the fire company, along with a certification that it’s been completed. In addition, the fire company will be required to update its policies and procedures for dealing with minors and implement a code of conduct that all members must adhere to.
"While the town finds this incident to be deplorable, we will administratively do what we can to ensure that the fire departments we contract with and serve our residents, must do so with respect and compassion," Schaffer wrote. "I have asked the town attorney and commissioner of public safety to enumerate additional safeguards in our contracts to prevent this behavior in the future. This type of behavior will not be tolerated."
Messages and emails left for Mchunguzi were not returned.
In the video, filmed by a concerned neighbor and posted online, Alt, who has served in the department for 22 years, is seen wheeling the child onto a gurney and into an ambulance during an emergency response on Westchester Avenue in West Babylon.
Alt, who did not return requests for comment from Newsday this week, is heard yelling, "Shut the [expletive] up," as members of his fire company and the Suffolk County Police Department assist in moving the gurney.
The girl, a rising fifth grader, is heard crying out: "I don’t want to" and "I want to go home" before Alt hurls another expletive at her and orders her to "shut your mouth."
Police officers on the scene alerted their supervisors about what transpired, according to a statement released by the Suffolk County Police Department. Internal Affairs was also notified, who then consulted with Babylon Town officials, authorities said.
In an Aug. 5 statement, the fire company's executive board said Alt had been "relieved of all of his duties pending a full and thorough investigation whereupon appropriate action will be taken. The fire company is presently reviewing all of its training, policies and procedures and will determine if further training with respect to responding to emergency calls is required."
Messages left with the leadership of the fire company were not returned and it's unclear if Alt's status with the department has changed. Alt remains listed as chief of the department on the company's website.
Child to get counseling
Alt, a conductor with the Long Island Rail Road for the past dozen years, has also been "withheld from duty pending full review of the situation," according to Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesperson David Steckel, who said Tuesday that there is no update to his status.
The child's grandmother told Newsday earlier this month that her granddaughter will need sustained counseling and therapy following her interaction with Alt.
"He was supposed to protect her and help her, not verbally abuse her and he failed her," the girl's mother told Newsday this month.
Meanwhile, Tracey Edwards, regional director of the NAACP New York State Conference, said she was granted access by the Suffolk Police Department's Internal Affairs Division to review body camera footage of the incident. Newsday is also seeking a copy of the police body camera footage.
In a statement, Edwards said the footage shows that the police officers and the EMT who initially engaged with the girl "demonstrated professionalism and empathy" while Alt, who was not involved in the initial interaction with the minor, "had no justification for his actions and should not have intervened."
In an interview, Edwards said she supports the town's new policies but also wants to see additional mental health personnel integrated within the Suffolk County Police Department and for the Albany-based Firefighters Association of the State of New York to assess its protocols statewide.
Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.
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