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Posted: Oct 27, 2016

Insurance Company Wrapping Up Investigation at Fire Department

Great Cacapon - West Virginia Counties Group Self-Insurance Risk Pool (WVCoRP) is completing its investigation of the fire that destroyed the Great Cacapon Volunteer Fire Department in July of this year. The fire department was able to start construction on a temporary structure across the street, and the department hopes to be able to move trucks in before freezing weather arrives.

As the investigation comes to a close, the fire department and Morgan County will be able to start demolition on the standing walls of the burnt-out building.

“We have released them to start (demolishing) the building. We are done. We are just waiting on the final reports,” said Chris Carey, an administrator for Risk Pool.

Carey said that means funds will be released to the county soon.

“I do have an outside company that is doing the fire investigation, and then I have another guy out there trying to do an appraisal on what it is going to cost to rebuild the building to establish what the actual cash value and replacement cost of the building are, so there are multiple people working on this,” Carey said.

The cause of the fire is still unknown at this time.

“No, we don’t know one way or the other, (it’s) undetermined. Basically what happens is, if I can’t pinpoint exactly 100 percent what the fire source or ignition is, I have to do it undetermined,” said George Harms, assistant state fire marshal. “But I put it in the area of the brush truck, in front of the brush truck.”

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Posted: Oct 27, 2016

New Aberdeen (NC) Fire Truck to Tackle Medical Calls, Accidents

A newly approved fire truck is expected to help the Aberdeen Fire Rescue Department respond more efficiently to medical calls. The Aberdeen Board of Commissioners recently approved the purchase of the custom-built vehicle, which is expected to be ready for delivery by early June.

Resembling a cross between a pickup truck and a fire engine, the squad vehicle isn’t equipped to handle large structure fires. According to Fire Chief Phillip Richardson, it is designed to tackle small traffic accidents and medical emergencies.

“Our personnel resources are tight,” Richardson said. “This will let us split up the crews and get a little more bang for our buck.”

More than 50 people work at the Fire Department, including 16 full-time firefighters. They respond to about 1,600 calls each year.

Richardson says about 35 percent of those calls are for the kind of medical issues that the new squad vehicle will handle.

“Ten years ago, we averaged 30 calls a month,” he said. “It’s a big difference in the volume of calls.”

Responding to medical calls with the new vehicle, Richardson says, will free up the town’s two fire engines and its larger fire tower vehicle to fight blazes.

“The truck is not designed to fight a house fire, but the majority of our calls aren’t for that anymore,” he said.

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Posted: Oct 27, 2016

Stewartsville (PA) Fire Co. Gets New $285K Tanker Truck

The Stewartsville Volunteer Fire Co.'s new, $285,000 tanker truck rolled into town for the first time. The gleaming, 3,000-gallon custom-built pumper-tanker replaces a tanker that was destroyed by fire at the township public works garage in March. Fire Chief Joe Mecsey III said it will be a few more weeks before the truck is put into service and responds to calls.

Officials will use the truck as a water supply in rural areas in Greenwich and elsewhere in Warren County, Mecsey said. Since March, Greenwich has relied on surrounding communities for tanker truck service and now will finally be able to return the favor. Besides hauling water, the new truck can pump 1,000 gallons a minute.

The volunteer fire company has about 35 members and eight auxiliary members, and several of them stopped by the station Saturday to get a look at the new vehicle, Mecsey said.

It's on a Freightliner chassis and was built by Pierce Manufacturing Inc. in Bradenton, Florida. The new truck is owned by the township and was purchased through insurance, said Mecsey, who is also the township's superintendent of public works.

The tanker-pumper is one of four firefighting vehicles used in Greenwich, accompanying two other pumpers that carry 1,000 gallons each and a 100-foot aerial platform truck.

Mecsey, in his 23rd year as chief, said the goal is to have it equipped and manned by the end of the month.

"We have driver training and operations training, and we still have to get equipment on it," he said. "Today we'll go through a checklist and review warranty forms.

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Posted: Oct 27, 2016

Zinke, Tester Help Unveil New Helena (MT) Fire Engines

HELENA - The Helena Fire Department unveiled its newest equipment Wednesday, with help from two of the state's top elected representatives. The two new fire engines were delivered on Tuesday. Sen. Jon Tester and Rep. Ryan Zinke both got a look at the vehicles while visiting Fire Station #1.

Sen. Jon Tester and Rep. Ryan Zinke both got a look at the vehicles while visiting Fire Station #1.

The new pumpers will replace Helena’s current engines, one from 1995 and one from 2005. All together, they cost just under $1 million. Helena Fire Chief Mark Emert says support from Zinke, Tester and Sen. Steve Daines was key to securing a FEMA grant to help pay for the equipment.

”The fire department’s great, the firemen themselves dedicated,” said Zinke after his tour. “But it’s great to see them have the right equipment, the right training, the right mission focus to get the job done, and I think Helena ought to be proud of this department.”

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Posted: Oct 27, 2016

Lee Commission Approves Purchase of New Fire Rescue Truck

LEESBURG (GA) - Lee County Public Safety will soon be better equipped to handle county rescue situations now that the Board of Commissioners has approved the purchase of a new fire apparatus rescue truck. The approval came at the commission's regular voting session Tuesday night following the presentation of the lowest bid notice by interim Public Safety Director Wesley Wells.

Wells said Lee County Fire Chief James Howell had evaluated the bids and determined the lowest qualified bid of $125,640 came from Custom Trucks and Body Works Inc. of Woodbury.

Custom Trucks will install a winch for $3,800, bringing the total expense for the new rescue truck to $129,440. Funding for the truck was allocated in the county’s SPLOST VI referendum, and delivery of the vehicle is expected within 150 days.

County Commission Chairman Rick Muggridge said the decision to approve the purchase was easy for him, as he believes public safety is one of the areas that should be addressed by SPLOST funding.

“It’s the best use of SPLOST funds, I think,” said Muggridge. “SPLOST ought to be about roads, and (infrastructure) projects and public safety vehicles. It’s our obligation to fulfill the promise we made to the voters. We said, ‘If you vote for this, these are the promises we make.’ We have a moral obligation really.”

Wells explained that the new rescue truck will replace a 1998 fire apparatus vehicle that has 161,000 miles and is considered unsafe.

“The current rescue truck we have is a ‘99 model and has been in service for 18 years,” he said. “It’s been involved in multiple accidents and has been deemed virtually unsafe at this point.

“We are not able to respond in the way we would like to, and we’re asking you to grant us this approval to purchase a new rescue truck that would serve for the next several years.”

With the purchase of the new vehicle, Muggridge said Lee County is continuing its recent trend of making significant improvements to the county’s fleet of Public Safety-related vehicles.

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