By Chris Paul
The town of Londonderry bid farewell to a valuable part of the Londonderry Fire Department last week.
Battalion Chief, James “Jim” Roger, officially retired last week, and leaves the department with over 30-years of experience in the municipal, and private sectors of life safety and emergency management.
Roger began his career as a firefighter here in Londonderry, back on Sept. 10, 1990, making his way through the ranks to his current position of Battalion Chief.
Roger is a New Hampshire native and grew up in Pelham. He has lived in town with his wife Maria since 1991 and raised his son Dan and daughter Marrissa, who are both Londonderry High School graduates.
Roger attended New Hampshire Technical College in Laconia and received an A.S.S. in Fire Science before joining the force.
As a Battalion Chief, his duties include, but are not limited to, serving as the department’s training officer and the town’s Assistant Emergency Management Director. During his tenure with the LFD, James served as a Technician Team Leader with the Southeastern New Hampshire Hazardous Materials Mutual Aid District. He was responsible for implementing tactical decisions for the mitigation of hazardous materials and worked closely with local, state and federal agencies.
As a Hazmat Technician and Specialist, Confined Space Rescue Technician, Trench Rescue Technician and Incident Command Specialist, James works with several companies across the United States as a Lead Safety Training Instructor.
He provided dynamic, up-to-date worksite safety training services to meet regulatory requirements for Hazardous Materials, Response Technical Rescue and the Incident Command System, as well as Emergency Management, Fire Management and EMS.
His safety training courses were always customized to fit each client’s specific needs to comply with industry and state specific requirements and laws. He is an experienced Industrial Trainer with a demonstrated history of working in the management consulting industry.
James achieved numerous professional certifications from New Hampshire Fire Standards and Training, the National Fire Academy, the International Association of Firefighters and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Domestic Preparedness during his many years of service.
At his Retirement Party, held on Thursday, Oct. 27, at Central Fire Station in Londonderry, Roger was presented with a golden ax for his 32-years of service by the Professional Fire Fighters of Londonderry Union and he and his family were escorted home after the ceremony for his final command given over the radio.