Former NY Fire Commissioner Thomas Von Essen: FDNY Needs More Accountability

Thomas Von Essen was the fire commissioner during the terror attacks. On September 11, the Fire Department of New York lost 343 firefighters.

Post-9/11, Von Essen and the FDNY came under criticism as some said that more firefighters could have been saved if their radios were up-to-date and working. However, Von Essen stated that the radios were a problem, but not the main problem.

"You're never going to find a perfect radio for a diaster of that magnitude,"said Von Essen. "You have to work smarter. You have to work safer, slower. You have to have people in different spots and control each group as they go up."

He stated that one way to improve the fire department is to have good leadership. "It's not about thr rank-in-file. It's about the leadership. It's always been about the leadership," stated Von Essen, "The firefighters, they're made to complain, but they're going to do it. They'll do any amount of training and any preparation that you ask them for. It's up to you to make the bosses acountable."

Von Essen also believes that the FDNY is still reeling from the loss of several veteran firefighters. Their wisdom and years of experience is something that needs to be addressed while training new firefighters.

WATCH THE INTERVIEW AFTER THE JUMP...