At memorial for fire administrator, stories emerge of a calm leader — and his teenage heroics

On April 16, 1993, 19-year-old volunteer firefighter Mike Drake had just arrived at a burning building in Bath when someone said a baby was inside.

Drake grabbed a ladder and raced to an upstairs window. Once inside, he plucked the 18-month-old girl out of her crib before hustling back down.

“The only reason that kid’s here today is because of him,” West Bath Fire Chief Jonathan Beane said.

Drake stayed in touch with the family and later attended the child’s college graduation, Beane said.

The story was told more than once during memorial services for Drake on Saturday, June 6. Harpswell’s fire administrator died unexpectedly on May 9 at the age of 52.

Drake was a leader at multiple fire departments on the Midcoast. In addition to his role in Harpswell, he served as a volunteer in his hometown of West Bath for his entire adult life and put in 25 years as a full-time firefighter and paramedic for the city of Bath. He trained countless firefighters, both as an instructor at a regional fire academy and at conventions with firefighters from across North America.

Dozens of firefighters from the three departments he served — and far beyond — turned out to honor Drake on Saturday. Their dress uniforms bore patches from numerous Midcoast agencies, plus Lewiston, Auburn and even departments out of state.

The memorial started with a brief service at the Daigle Funeral Home in Bath, where an overflow crowd had firefighters lining the hallway and staircase.

Later, at the West Bath Fire Department, firefighters stood in formation and saluted their colleague during the sounding of the “last alarm,” when dispatch calls a firefighter on the radio for a final time, then gives a tribute over the air. An American flag was presented to Drake’s family and a bagpiper played “Amazing Grace.”

West Bath Deputy Fire Chief Nick Randall served with Drake for 19 years. Drake was deputy chief when Randall joined the department. They swapped roles about 10 years ago, with Randall moving up and Drake replacing Randall as captain.

Drake and Randall “spent hundreds and hundreds of hours training together,” Randall said. Drake would lead training exercises where a department burns down a building donated for the purpose. Randall assisted him, then started to lead the exercises himself.

“When it came to fire, he was the subject matter expert,” Randall said after the services.

Drake was solid in emergencies, too.

“Whatever the incident was, he brought a level of calm to new guys, people with experience, kind of across the board,” Randall said. “He had been there and done that, and it showed.”

A collection of honors was on display at the fire station, including a 1997 award for EMT of the Year from the West Bath Fire Department and a 2022 recognition as Instructor of the Year from the Tri-County Training Association. The finest of the plaques showed a firefighter carrying a child — a commemoration of the 1993 rescue.

Drake joined the West Bath department as a junior firefighter at the age of 15 and never left. He served two stints as deputy fire chief and put in time as a captain and training officer.

He served with the Bath Fire Department from 1996-2021. He started to pick up shifts as a municipal firefighter in Harpswell in 2020, then took a part-time position after his retirement from Bath and from his other career as a lobsterman.

In 2023, Harpswell hired Drake as just the second person to fill the position of fire administrator. The fire administrator coordinates Harpswell’s municipal firefighters, who provide support to the three volunteer fire and rescue agencies spread across town. The administrator also takes firefighting shifts and serves as the town’s emergency management director and fire warden.

Drake’s nearly three-year tenure saw the town hire its first full-time firefighters, extend firefighter coverage to weekends, and gain voter approval to build a municipal fire station.

Paul Kittle is an emergency medical technician and former rescue chief with the Orr’s and Bailey Islands Fire Department. Kittle said Drake was easy to get along with. Despite his extensive knowledge and experience, he didn’t talk down to anyone and “was never in your face about anything.”

In an emergency, though, Drake would take control and manage the response with cool and logic.

“It’s a big loss for Harpswell,” Kittle said.