Saugus Fire captain hanging up his helmet

SAUGUS – Capt. Daniel McNeil has seen a lot in his time with the Saugus Fire Department.From five-alarm fires and car accidents, to medical emergencies and bomb threats.But McNeil is saying goodbye to it all when he retires next week after 39 years with the department.?It?s a big fraternity,” said McNeil. “Everybody is involved. I?ll miss that a lot. I?ll do a lot of fishing and golfing. I worked all my life. I love working here. I think it?s just time to sit back and see what life has to offer.”McNeil, 61, joined the department in 1972 at the urging of a friend?s father who was a Saugus police officer. Before that, McNeil said he had never given any real thought to becoming a firefighter.?It wasn?t really something I wanted to do,” said McNeil, who is married with three grown daughters. “He was a Saugus cop and he basically put us all together and said, ?Go down and take the exam.? At that time I was 21. I was just working in a factory.”McNeil can remember vividly his first call as a rookie firefighter. The old Ace Welding building in Saugus Center caught fire and rapidly turned into a five-alarm blaze.McNeil and his crew battled the fire until it was extinguished, but he was terrified the entire time.?I learned a lot,” said McNeil. “Back then when you got on, they gave you a pair of rubber boots, a coat and a helmet and said, ?OK, you?re a firefighter.? You were petrified. You didn?t want to make a mistake that would hurt anybody. Now the guys go to the academy for 11 weeks and they probably learn in 11 weeks what it took me 10 years to learn.”But while McNeil was modest in recounting his past, Fire Chief James Blanchard had no problem rattling off numerous stories about his longtime partner in firefighting.This includes McNeil completing a building search without air in heavy smoke, scaling a wall at Kowloon to check the exhaust on the roof during a kitchen fire and jumping off the garage of an apartment building while keeping a neighboring church fire from spreading as tenants evacuated.?His work as a firefighter has been exemplary,” said Blanchard. “He?s dependable like a rock. No matter what the instance. You have horrific calls, fires that no one should be going into, but he?d always be there with you.”McNeil, who is second in command, made captain in 1990 after 19 years with the department and in 2000 took over as the head of fire prevention.In that role, McNeil oversees building plans and zoning laws to ensure local businesses and homes are up to fire code, runs fire drills at the local schools and tests fire hydrants.He was also given the Thomas Linskey Award, the highest honor given to Saugus firefighters, for his role in pushing for the state legislature to award benefits to the family of a firefighter who died two years after being struck by a car while on a call.?He?s made my job so much better because he takes care of a ton of stuff around here,” said Blanchard. “He?s extremely knowledgeable with all the fire codes. When he tells you something, you can take that to the bank. He actually studies all this stuff. It?s incredible.”McNeil said firefighting has seen some drastic changes over the years with the introduction of lighter hoses, higher capacity fire engines and equipment that is much safer than when he first started.One piece of equipment that was introduced early in his career was the Scott Air-Pak (commonly referred to as the oxygen tank), but firefighters were hesitant to use them at first.?It?s the equipment that?s changed so much,” said McNeil. “A lot of guys wouldn?t use (air tanks) because it was unmanly. But we were forced to use them. I have to give the officers credit.”Medical calls are another aspect of the job that has changed dramatically. McNeil, who is also trained as an Emergency Medical Technician, said years ago firefighters almost never did medical aids, now they make up the majority of the calls they get.?Back then we fought fires, that was it,” said McNeil. “Today we respond to everyth