40-Year FDNY Veteran Named New Commissioner

New York, NY —

After much speculation about who would replace outgoing Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scopetta, a 40-year veteran with the FDNY, has been tapped to fill the post. WNYC's Kathleen Horan has more.

REPORTER: Salvatore Cassano, who's currently the highest ranking uninformed officer in the department, has been named to serve as Commissioner. Some thought that the mayor might appoint the first woman to the post but Bloomberg says Cassano's experience won him the job.

When Bloomberg named Scopetta, he had no prior FDNY experience. The 65-year-old Cassano has held every rank in his four decades with the FDNY. He explains why he got choked up at the City hall announcement:

CASSANO: My brother was in the department, I lost my best friends on September 11th. I'm really moved, I'm honored and I'm humbled.

REPORTER:Cassano has been credited with helping to rebuild the department after the loss of 343 firefighters at the World Trade Center. He says he plans to focus on increasing fire prevention efforts and diversity outreach. For WNYC, I'm Kathleen Horan.

REPORTER: In a written statement, the Uniformed Firefighters Association says the union looks forward to working with the new Fire Commissioner.