Phoenix Fire Chief Alan "Bruno" Brunacini Steps Down After 48 Years

Al walks the walk. Here, a younger Bruno gets some fire action.

Say it ain't so! After nearly half a century with the Phoenix Fire Department (PFD), Chief Alan. V. Brunacini has stepped down. Bruno's impact on the fire service is legendary; his influence on command and safety is seen worldwide. In fact, his impact on how the fire service actually delivers service to its customers is so profound that he's often called "America's Fire Chief."

One of Bruno's greatest gifts to all of us is his good example. He's a fully present listener, which in today's age of cell phones and PDAs is rare. He's reached the top of the mountain careerwise, but he's still got street cred. He remains a firefighter, heart and soul.

"While many may boast publicly about their personal achievements and contributions to the fire service, Chief Brunacini has always maintained a humble yet respectful posture that was mission-driven and respectful of the internal and external customer," says Tim Sendelbach, chief of training for the Savannah (Ga.) Fire Department and president of the International Society of Fire Service Instructors.

Bruno's humble nature has given the masses easy access to his knowledge, experience, insight and friendship. Few who have met him don't feel as if they've known him forever. His is a subtle charisma; you don't know what hit you, but you'll never forget it.

(right) We all have to start somewhere, and Bruno started out in 1958 dressed like a Fuller Brush salesman. He's in the top row, second from the left. Really. That's his first engine, an L Model Mack, in the background. (left) Portrait of the younger man as a newly promoted battalion chief, in the mid-1960s.

"Bruno is my friend and has never, ever hesitated to coach me and encourage me," says Chase Sargent, division chief (ret.) of the Virginia Beach Fire Department. "He has the quickest wit I have ever encountered, which I think is because of his genius in knowing people, politics and the fire service."

It's not just understanding people that makes Bruno an icon and a mass-industry mentor. It's that he sees the true value in each individual's contributions to their organization and recognizes that these contributions will always be a fire department's greatest strength.

(right) B.C. Bruno operates at a working fire in the late 1960s. (left) A coat and tie on Bruno? Where's the Hawaiian shirt? Maybe Bruno, shown here at a classroom session in the early 1980s, is wearing a grass skirt under his pants.

"Bruno ‘humanized' the role of the fire chief by taking ‘human' interest in the job," says Billy Goldfeder, deputy chief of the Loveland-Symmes (Ohio) Fire Department. "Due to his ‘human interest,' Bruno has led us to understand that all the stuff we have doesn't matter if the troops driving that stuff and using that stuff aren't our priority. When listening to him talk about Mrs. Smith, you have to understand that he is really talking about Firefighter Smith. And if we reasonably take care of Firefighter Smith, Mrs. Smith automatically gets taken care of."

(right) Here, Bruno enjoys a moment of quiet reflection with his three offspring, Candi, Nick and John. Each is a firefighter with the Phoenix Fire Department. (left)The humble knight and his trusty steed: Bruno has spent thousands of dollars and more than 20 years restoring this 1952 L Model Mack. The project is a testament to his tenacity and his wife Rita's patience.

All three of Chief Brunacini's children, Nick, John and Candi, have followed their father's footsteps, each becoming members of the Phoenix Fire Department. That's an amazing testament to Bruno as a firefighter, a chief and a father. His middle child, John, a captain in Phoenix, really says it best. "Fire-service folks are always saying to me, 'You must be so proud of your father and what he has done for the fire service.' Of course I am, but I'm more proud of him for being my father than for being the fire chief. Dad raised all of his children to be fine, outstanding B-shifters. Dad only cared about the big stuff that really mattered when we were growing up. He never dwelled on the stupid, petty stuff that would have made most other parents hold their children under water until they stopped breathing. He taught the three of us the importance of having a good work ethic, respecting other people and taking responsibility for our actions. He insisted that we follow the golden rule, which he summed up in two words: Be nice. I'm very proud of my father's professional career, but his greatest accomplishment is being the best father anyone could ask for." Thanks, Chief, for always being nice.