SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WGGB/WSHM) - It has been two days since it was announced that the Springfield Fire Department will have a new commissioner. On Thursday, the department’s soon-to-be leader had his first one-on-one television interview.

Western Mass News spoke with him about what his plans are when he takes over and the historic significance behind this hire.

There was no shortage of celebratory messages for Mike Rivera from his fellow firefighters. For the last 17 years, he has been a proud member of the Springfield Fire Department, having the title of deputy chief for the past year.

But soon, his helmet will be changing shields, as it was announced on Tuesday Rivera will be the department’s new leader following the retirement of current commissioner B.J. Calvi.

It’s an opportunity Rivera is excited and humbled about, “it’s not about hitting the ground running at a million miles per hour. It’s about sitting down and really assessing, listening to the members, listening to the community, and pay attention to what it really needs, and really dialing that in.”

Born and raised in Springfield, and a graduate of Putnam Vocational Technical Academy, Rivera has been a dedicated member of Springfield’s finest. Beforehand, he spent time in the military and worked for the Hampden County Sheriff’s Office.

He is set to take over the fire department for Massachusetts’ third largest city, and the first Latino to have the role, it’s a proud moment for the hometown hero, “ultimately, it’s about serving my members. It’s taking that position and being there for the next generation of firefighters and making everyone prior to me proud,” Rivera said.

Rivera already has plans once it becomes official, looking to build relationships with Mayor Domenic Sarno, his administration, and other department heads in the short term.

He also looks to add a few more firefighters to a team of 280, as well as corroborate with the city on abandoned properties like Vibra Hospital as soon as possible.

Rivera told Western Mass News his future goals, including the buildup of the training department, “being a very young department and having that many members, it would be nice to expand that training department so that we’re able to continue to train at the level that we are now.”

Rivera said he is very satisfied with the foundation set by his predecessor. His message to the city: help will always be there no matter what, “it’s a diverse community (and) a diverse department, and I’m here to make sure that, regardless of where you come from, what your culture is, religion, race, it doesn’t matter, we continue to serve everybody with the best product that we can serve here at the Springfield Fire Department.”

Rivera is thankful for all of those who helped get him to this point. While his swearing in ceremony won’t be until early next month, he will officially take over the reins as fire commissioner on July 24th.

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