Norwalk ‘s Own Takes on DC’s 911
By Brian Dolan
WASHINGTON -Michael Latessa, who for six months has run Norwalk ‘s police and fire communications center, soon will take over as chief of the troubled 911 emergency system in Washington , D.C. , officials announced Monday.
“Second to the chief of police and chief of the fire department, this is the most critical appointment to the city,” said Tony Bullock, spokesman for Washington Mayor Anthony Williams. “We have had longstanding problems with our 911 system.”
Last year, one man died in a fire when four 911 operators did not answer their phones and two others “unplugged” five minutes early, according to The Washington Post. The fire consumed one building and damaged three homes.
“Part of [Latessa’s] job will be to improve our response time, but the good news for him is that he will be running a state-of-the-art, best-in-the-nation 911 system,” Bullock said. “We are also at the crossroads of building a new facility in the range of $50 to 60 million.
“We have the added burden here of protecting not only the city, but also all the federal buildings, like the Capitol, while coordinating with other federal agencies, which is a complicated arrangement,” Bullock said. “This is especially true in the post-September 11 environment.”
On Monday, Williams appointed Latessa to the position, which has been officially vacant since October. Howard Baker resigned from the job last year after acknowledging he used a racially derogatory term during a meeting with subordinates.
“We have made significant strides in improving our 911 services, but Mike is the right person to take us to the next level,” Williams said in a statement. “I am pleased that we are able to bring him here to the District, and I’m confident that he’s going to manage this operation so that we are not just meeting, but exceeding our performance goals.”
Latessa said the new position is similar to the job in Norwalk , which he began last July.
“The only obvious difference will be the size of the job,” Latessa said.
Norwalk Mayor Alex Knopp said Latessa’s appointment comes as no surprise to him and will not impede the department Latessa leaves behind. “I think this outcome only confirms we made the right choice when we hired [Latessa],” Knopp said. “The fact that the officials of D.C. thought he was qualified shows we picked the right person.”Latessa , 49 , began his public safety career more than 30 years ago as a part-time firefighter in Wellesley , Mass. He continued as a dispatcher in Durham , N.H. , from 1973-77, while attending the University of New Hampshire.
From 1977 to 1982, he worked for the emergency medical services bureau in the Missouri Division of Health Bureau of E.M.S. From 1982 to 1985, he was chief of emergency medical services in St. Louis , and from 1985 to 1988, he was EMS director for Lee County, Fla. and the award Under under his direction, the emergency team won the National EMT Paramedic award.
For the next decade, Latessa w as director of the Public Safety Department in Manatee County , Fla. In the five years preceding before he came to Norwalk , he worked for a commercial billing company and for a large manufacturing company as health, safety and security director and . He also served as a reserve deputy sheriff, devoting about 15 hours a week to developing his law enforcement background.
“Mike was a good guy, a good listener, and a good leader,” said Mark Edenfield, chief of emergency medical services in Manatee County . “He took our ambulance fleet from eight to twelve vehicles and oversaw seven different divisions, including animal control and administrative work.”
Latessa’s new position carries an annual salary of $111,000, Bullock said. He is scheduled to begin work Feb. 9.
“We think he is superbly qualified,” Bullock said, “and are sorry to steal him away from the good people of Norwalk .”
