Hamburg promotes new police sergeant

HAMBURG — The Hamburg Borough Police Department is scheduled to be back to full operational patrol and command staff on Monday, July 14.

With the recent resignation of Sergeant Chris Nichols, the Borough of Hamburg Police Department was left without a commanding officer. The immediate promotion of acting Sgt. George Gunderman and return of Sgt. Dave McNulty from extended medical leave next Monday will bring the department back to full operational power.

The only exception is the loss of a detective, which was Gunderman’s position before he took the acting sergeant role.

Police Director Wayne Yahm announced that he has received applications for the vacant position from several qualified officers from other departments, a few of whom already have several years experience.

He hopes to have a recommendation to the council before the August meeting. At that point, an existing officer will be promoted to fill the detective position and the new officer will take over on patrol.

Mayor Paul Marino gave his input to the recent resignations, of which there have been six in the last three years.

“We’ve had a lot of turnover at the police department over the last couple of years,” he admitted. “But we support everyone’s decision to do what’s best for their career.”

He added that the current roster includes “a good group of police officers who are committed to the Borough of Hamburg.”