BRANCHVILLE -- The former Swartswood Volunteer Fire Department, which lost its official recognition by Stillwater Township earlier this year, found a new home for its tanker truck in the bays of the Branchville Hose Company No. 1, a surprise to many Branchville firefighters.
The donation was a few quiet weeks in the making, but the tanker truck from the former department was driven in at the end of the Branchville fire company's monthly meeting on Thursday night, with horns blaring, to the delight -- and complete shock -- of all firefighters who had not know about the "secret."
"We wanted to give it to a department that justified the need for it, and they had it," former Swartswood Fire Chief Anthony Ashley said.
The donation of the 2008 tanker truck, which holds 2,000 gallons of water, will "truly benefit" the Branchville company, said Keith Whitehead, fire chief of Branchville Hose Company No. 1.
After the Swartswood Volunteer Fire Department was no longer recognized by Stillwater Township,the result left the former fire department without its non-profit status. The department had to either donate any items it had left or sell the items; however, any money received from a sale would have to be donated to another non-profit organization, according to the Internal Revenue Service.
"This is a great story from bad to good," said Tony Frato, vice president of the Branchville Hose Company No. 1, who also serves as the borough's mayor.
For Ashley, the donation was bittersweet.
"It stinks, but we've always helped each other out, so it is going to someone who truly needs it," Ashley said of the donation. He said that he and former members took their time looking around to see which department was in need.
Whitehead said the additional tanker would greatly enhance the fire company's operations since it only has a mini pumper. In addition, the fire company's access to water is off Route 206, where there is minimal water pressure due to 4-inch water mains, resulting in a slower flow of water during a fire.
The mini pumper the fire department owns holds 275 gallons of water and 15 gallons of foam that is used to saturate materials inside a structure that may re-ignite. It pumps 1,000 gallons per minute.
The new truck will pump 1,250 gallons per minute and will hold more than seven times the amount of water. In addition, the fire truck