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The Making of Wyndmoor Hose Co #1 Anthony Russo Many people in the community of Springfield Township wonder how Wyndmoor Hose Co. #1 came to be. It will be learned when the Wyndmoor Hose Company of Montgomery County PA was established, what it takes to be a firefighter, and firefighter statistics. The type of gear that is used, different kinds of fire trucks, and other fire company’s in Springfield Township will also be discussed. Due to the dedication of men and women volunteering their time and talents, volunteer fire companies are invaluable to serving its local communities. For without them the community would suffer. Benjamin Franklin, the establisher of the first volunteer fire company, created the Union Fire Company in Philadelphia on December 7, 1736. Franklin decided to create the fire company after his visit to the city of Boston. He saw Boston’s effectiveness and how well their company operated with the dedication of men volunteering. These men were not just good Samaritans. This group of men made it their business to attend all fires. They even held monthly meetings to develop skills. The Philadelphia company originally had thirty men in the department. Their equipment included leather buckets, with strong bags and baskets, which were to be brought to every fire. There were no hoses or horse drawn wagons. The men used what was called a bucket brigade. Home owners were required to have leather bags or buckets in every house. Wyndmoor Hose Company is one of three Fire Companies in Springfield Township Montgomery County PA. The other two companies are Flourtown and Oreland. Wyndmoor Hose Company is the oldest of the three companies. It was established in 1907. The Wyndmoor Hose Company began as an industrial base located at Mermaid Lane and Queen Street in Wyndmoor PA. There, the Nelson Valve Company formed an in-house fire brigade. They thought this was necessary because the community was growing and big companies were being built. The residents volunteered recognizing the communal benefit; and with help from the valve company the two wheeled hand cart was purchased along with 500 feet of hose. By 1909, the shed used at the valve company was expanded as were the hose carts to four wheels drawn by horses. The next big move to the fire services was the purchase of touring cars. These cars were fitted with tanks of water and tools. Soon Wyndmoor was no longer a two-horse outfit. In 1927, Wyndmoor Hose Company purchased two Hale Pumpers and in 1940 a city service ladder truck. In the twenties Wyndmoor Hose Company received a new home on Queen Street, closer to Willow Grove Ave. With the expanding community the fire company was fortunate enough to purchase a large piece of land and built a firehouse that still stands and serves as a fire house for nearly 50 years. The fire house is on Willow Grove Ave where it still stands today it has been serving Wyndmoor. Firefighters do a lot more than fight fires. Firefighters also do vehicle rescues, gas/odor leaks outside, gas/odor leaks inside, fire alarms, down wires, and a much more while serving its community. When the fire company responds to a vehicle rescue it is because people are trapped, in a vehicle, the car is smoking or on fire. The main goal is to get the person out of the car fast but making sure not to injure them more than they already are. To do that hydraulic tools commonly known as “the jaws of life” are used. They are used to cut open the door, roof, and to stabilize the car. It may not be necessary need to cut off anything, but if so, the tools specialized to do so are available. For gas/odor leaks inside and outside of a building extreme care must be taken. Every fire company should have a gas meter on all their apparatus. Gas meters are created to detect different gases. The gas meter at the Wyndmoor Hose Company is one that is Capable of monitoring LEL, O2, H2, and CO with Motion Alert. Not a lot of gas meters have the motion alert. The motion alert is a special feature that detects if the firefighter is moving. If there is no motion for a certain amount of time a beeping sound will go off louder and louder, and it will begin blinking red so the other firefighters can hear and find the downed firefighter. The most common fire call is the fire alarm. This happens when a smoke detector goes off and the people inside do not know why it is going off. So when responding to a fire alarm the responding company will go in and investigate the reason why it went off. Most of the time it is a faulty alarm due to bad cooking and our services of anything major are not required. When wires are down people immediately dial 911 which dispatches the fire company. The fire company responds to keep the area clear and safe until PECO comes out to take care of the situation. The company does not know if the wire is alive or dead, but the main responsibility of being a fireman is the safety of the people around. It is PECO’s responsibility to maintain the wires. Most of the down wire calls are during a storm with the wind bringing down trees and limbs with wet ground. Firefighters wear lots of different gear to protect themselves from the heat. There are basically two main things to wear; they are the helmet and bunker gear. The helmet protects the firefighters head from heat and falling debris. There are also special ear flaps which protect the firefighter’s ears from the extreme heat. As protection to the firefighter’s head, the helmet is the most recognized piece of a firefighter’s gear. In 1836, when H.T. Graracap invented the first helmet in America, it was made from leather. The helmet has a sloped back so the water rolls off the back of them. It was added when the Cairns brothers made a badge to go on the front of the helmet to tell which fire company each of the men belonged to. As years past The National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) began laying down standards for the design of the firefighting helmet. The 1970’s brought great change to the fire helmet. The main change to the fire helmet was the hood to cover the ears and the neck. One other thing was the development of the flip down face shield to protect the face. (S.R.H.) There are many different kinds of helmets. The two main helmets are leather and metro. Firefighter’s helmets usually weigh around five pounds, though is huge in the prevention of falling debris hitting the firefighter. Firefighters need protective gear to go into a burning building. In the 19th century the firefighters responded to fire calls in pants and a shirt made from wool. The wool helped keep the firefighters warm in the winter. Later a new outer layer that protected the firefighters from heat up to 500 degrees Fahrenheit was developed. By 20th century the temperature protection went up to 1200 degrees Fahrenheit. Bunker gear is made up of boots, pants, and jacket. The jacket weighs around 15 pounds without anything in the pockets or attached flashlight. The boots are made with a steel sole so when firefighters are in a building they do not get stabbed through the sole of the boot. The boot also has a steel toe so that way any falling debris does not crush the firefighter’s foot. The pants are made of the same material as the jacket. The pants and the jacket have three layers. The outside layer has reflective stripes and is heat and tear resistant. The middle layer removes moisture, such as sweat, so the firefighters do not get overheated. The inner layer is a vapor layer that keeps the firefighter safe. The pants and the boots can weigh as much as 30 pounds together. To help firefighter’s breath in smokey conditions, firefighters wear what is called a SCBA (self-contained breathing apparatus). There are many different brands of SCBA. For example, there is Scott which the Wyndmoor Hose Company uses, and there is also Drager SCBA. The firefighters wear the SCBA on their backs. They can breathe for 30 minutes before changing their SCBA. On average a SCBA can weigh around 30 pounds. To completely outfit one firefighter with the protective clothing and breathing apparatus costs approximately $3,500. At the Wyndmoor Hose Company they currently have a custom built Rescue-Pumper, Squrt, and a QRS. The rescue holds all of the rescue equipment. That includes hydraulic tools, ropes, oil dry, rescue tool, light tower, water rescue vests, hoses, and a lot more. The squrt holds hand tools, two hydraulic tools, fire extinguishers, and a 50 foot mid-mount ladder. The squrt is basically a small ladder truck. Both the rescue and the squrt hold 750 gallons of water each. This may sound like a lot of water but in reality it is only about ten to fifteen minutes worth of firefighting. Having the water on the truck provides just enough time for the rest of the departments to get a five inch supply line to the hydrant or to another department’s truck. There is a lot of different types of nozzles. There are fog and straight stream. The straight stream nozzles come in different sizes. The rescue truck holds water and foam. The foam is used for car fires and oil fires. The QRS is a first aid vehicle. QRS stands for quick response services. The QRS holds all the EMS equipment. EMS stands for emergency medical services. That includes backboards, first aid kits, a gas meter, neck braces, an AED, and a lot more. AED stands for automated external defibrillator. The QRS also responds to water rescues with the rescue boat, as well as it responds to Haz-Mat calls with the Haz-Mat Decon trailer. The Wyndmoor Hose Company is part of the Montgomery County Haz-Mat Decon units. What that means is they respond to hazardous material spills. When they arrive at the scene the team set up the decon. The decon is a group of responders who showers off the firefighters that were exposed to the chemical. The U.S Fire Administration estimates that as of 2007, there were 1,148,800 firefighters in the United States. Out of those, nearly 72 percent of them were volunteers. Three-quarters of all the firefighters are between the ages of 20 and 49. (Alex Vega-Singer). At the Wyndmoor Hose Company there are 47 members in the department. Just think 47 people volunteer their time and effort, and put their lives on the line to help their community. Not only is it a huge commitment on the part of the firefighter, but also on his or her family members. The family member will have to do many things without the volunteer being home, such as family parties, missing a child’s sporting event and just missing out on the family dinner because he/she was out taking care of the neighborhood. Volunteer firefighters are trained to respond to emergencies such as fires, car accidents and water rescues. Depending on the location of the fire house, volunteers may cover a large urban area or a small rural area. Not all volunteer firefighters have specialized jobs within the department, but the fire chief and truck drivers have very important roles in directing and driving other firefighters to the scene. Those interested in volunteer firefighting are trained for several weeks in a variety of procedures and handling before they can take part in a real emergency. To be a volunteer firefighter many hours of special training are required. Almost all of the hours are on the weekend giving up the volunteer’s own time. There are lots of courses that need to be taken. One hundred and eighty eight hours of training are needed to become certified firefighter. But it is required to go back every once in a while to get refreshers and to learn about new equipment. The Wyndmoor Hose Company is all about helping the community. On average the Wyndmoor Hose Company responds on average to 315 calls a year. The Wyndmoor Hose Company helps out the community by taking part in fundraisers, attending parades, and demonstrating fire prevention techniques. One big event that the Wyndmoor Hose Company holds for the community is a carnival. This is going to be the fourth year that the Wyndmoor Hose Company is hosting this event. The biggest event at the carnival is held on the last night and that is the fireworks. Every year the company receives high praises of how great the fireworks are. Another affair that the Wyndmoor Hose Company hosts is birthday parties. Birthday parties at the fire house are very exciting for the young children attending. Along with the birthday festivities the firefighters run a fire prevention show geared towards young children. When the prevention program begins all the children gather to watch a short video about how to be fire safe. Once the firefighter is finished talking to the children, a member puts on all of their gear to show the children not to be afraid if the fire department does come to their homes. Stop Drop and Roll is also taught during this time. It is also taught for the children not to play with matches or fire and if something does happen children know what to do and that the fire department is on their way to help. They learn the importance of the numbers 911. Wyndmoor firemen meet once a week on Monday nights at 7 pm to review drills and work on new techniques, and procedures. During Monday night drills the trucks are checked and all the equipment is checked out to ensure all the equipment are in good working conditions. It is also important to maintain the cleanliness of all the vehicles. Not only is Wyndmoor a fire company, it is a business. With business meetings held once a month. Any member can attend this meeting which is directed by the board. In Springfield Township there are three fire companies. They are Wyndmoor Hose Company, Flourtown Fire Company, and Oreland Fire Company. The Wyndmoor Hose Company is the oldest of the three. Wyndmoor is the rescue company, Flourtown is the ladder company, and Oreland is the pumper company. All three companies work as a team with its own special talent. The three companies also respond with other companies. Wyndmoor responds with Glenside Fire Company, Flourtown responds to Barren Hill Fire Company in Whitemarsh, and Oreland responds to Fort Washington. The companies only respond to the other company’s calls if they are called in. The Wyndmoor Hose Company volunteer services still work for the Springfield community because during the day enough members work locally being able to respond to the calls. Fortunately their employees respect what these men and women do and allow them to respond to the calls. All three organizations are made up of dedicated men and women who volunteer their time and effort to protect their community from fire and other life threatening situations. The volunteer companies are the heart and soul of its community. They are an invaluable entity.