The Coudersport Volunteer Fire Department (Dept 48) has been awarded $10,260.00 under the Fire Prevention and Safety program. The funds will be used to purchase a live fire extinguisher training system for use in their fire prevention program.

The Star Hose Company of Port Allegany (Dept 3) has been awarded $19,000 under the AFG Operations and Safety program for the purchase of equipment.

The Eldred Borough Fire Department (Dept 4) has been awarded $27,389.00 under the AFG Operations and Safety program for the purchase of equipment and PPE.

The Lawrenceville Fire Department (Dept 8) has been awarded $110,628.00 under the AFG Operations and Safety program for the purchase of equipment and PPE.

The Tri-Town Fire Co. of Ulysses (Dept 47) has been awarded $53,913.00 under the AFG Operations and Safety program for the purchase of PPE.

At approximately 2000hrs Emporium (Cameron County Dept 14) was dispatched to a reported structure fire in multi-family dwelling in the Borough. St. Marys (Elk County Co. 1) has been requested to the scene to assist. Preliminary reports indicate that all residents have been accounted for at this time.

The blaze has vented through the roof of the structure and crews are working to gain access to the attic area of the structure. A water curtain has been set up on one side of the structure due to the proximity to a neighboring structure.

More information will be posted as it becomes available. You can listen to the action live via our scanner feed HERE.

UPDATE: Emporium Fire Caused By Electrical Fault

A stubborn structure fire on Emporium's main drag on April 12, 2001 has been declared accidental by the Pennsylvania State Police Fire Marshal and the Emporium Fire Chiefs in a news release today.

The fire occurred in an apartment building at 101 West Fourth Street in Emporium Borough owned by George Sowers, Sr., of Emporium PA. A doctor's office was located in the downstairs of the building.

The investigation found that the fire started in a downstairs apartment of the structure. An electrical fault occurred where electronic equipment was plugged into an extension cord.

The fire spread into the wall, and then traveled to a second story apartment and the attic area.

Two apartments of the structure sustained damage from the fire. The attic area and the roof of the structure sustained heavy damage from the fire. A second upstairs apartment and doctor's office downstairs sustained smoke and water damage.

All occupants who were home at the time of the fire escaped without injury. Damages were estimated at $85,000.00. Route 120 was closed for hours with auto traffic detoured.

Emporium and St. Mary's Fire Departments successfully stopped the fire from spreading to another house barely 15 feet away.

A wildfire in the Nelson Run Rd. area of Wharton Twp has burned approximately 200 acres of forestland. The blaze was spotted late Sunday afternoon from area fire towers around 1700hrs. Once the location of the blaze was pinpointed fire companies from three counties were dispatched to attempt to control the blaze. Departments responding included from Potter County; Austin Dept 44, Roulette Dept 46, Coudersport Dept 48 with Shinglehouse Dept 39 transferring an engine to cover station 46, from Cameron County; Emporium Dept 14 and Sinnamahonning Dept 16, and Dept 3 Port Allegany from McKean County. The DCNR Forestry Dept. also dispatched crews to the scene including a bulldozer and air tanker.

The blaze was considered to be contained at approximately 2130 hrs with crews remaining on scene until 2230 hrs at which time all volunteer fire companies were released and the incident was turned over to the Forestry Dept.

The Basic Vehicle Rescue Series including Awareness, Operations, and Technician levels is now scheduled to be held at Tri-Town Fire Co. in Ulysses, Pa. This will also include DOH Certification test following the Technician course. Juniors may take both Awareness and Operations levels, but NOT the Tech. level. You may sign up for any or all levels you wish to participate in (provided you have completed the previous level for Ops or Tech). Each level course consists of 16 hours to be split between Sat. and Sun. for the dates provided. Lunch will be provided with a boot donation to help cover costs.

Any questions may be directed to  Roy Hunt @ 814-848-3876 (leave message if no answer) or to  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . We look forward to see you all there.

Dates:

Awareness------------------------------------June 19 & 20

Operations-----------------------------------July 10 & 11

Technician-----------------------------------Aug  21 &22

All scheduled times will be 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. with a 1 hr lunch break.

10 fifty-ton steel “trees” will travel on a 28 tractor-trailer convoy from New York City to Coatesville on April 14, 2010 Coatesville, PA-April 1, 2010 Forty-one years ago, the last trainload carrying the structural shapes (known as “trees”) destined for the World Trade Center in New York City pulled out of Lukens Steel in Coatesville, PA. They were the last, of many, which would frame the first nine floors and soaring lobbies of the North and South Towers of the world’s tallest buildings at that time. As the horrors of 9/11 unfolded, it was the lasting images of the “trees” still standing which would etch an indelible image in the minds of those who viewed them. The trees became the icons of the tragedy. Little could anyone fathom in 1969 that those same “trees” would once again be returning to Coatesville some four decades later, to become the centerpiece of The National Iron and Steel Heritage Museum in Coatesville. Steel shapes no longer, but now respected relics of one of our nation’s worst national nightmares.

The 28-truck convoy is estimated to arrive in Coatesville, within the confines of The Lukens National Historic District, on April 14 in the early afternoon. Their arrival will be greeted by a distinguished procession into the city. A welcoming ceremony will be hosted by The Graystone Society, with 9/11 remembrances. President of The Graystone Society, Scott G. Huston (a direct descendent of Rebecca Lukens, the first female industrialist in The United States) will chair the event. “It’s our goal,” says Huston, “to honor those who lost their lives on 9/11, as well as the steelworkers who created the steel for these monumental buildings during the 1960’s.We feel that it is only fitting that these trees become the keystone of The National Iron and Steel Heritage Museum, especially as the 10th anniversary of 9/11 draws near.”

The following article was written by Tiger Schmittendorf who is chairman of FASNY’s Recruitment and Retention Committee and serves the County of Erie Department of Emergency Services (Buffalo NY) as Deputy Fire Coordinator. He created a recruitment effort that doubled his own fire department’s membership and helped net 525+ new volunteers countywide. He is a Nationally Certified Fire Instructor and has been a firefighter since 1980. Visit his blog at www.tigerschmittendorf.com.

As I travel around the country talking with other firefighters, a commonly recurring theme of our chat is the future of the volunteer fire service.

The conversation always comes around to the topic of today’s firefighters and the next generation of firefighters. Some “more experienced” firefighters (notice I didn’t use the term older) share that they don’t understand the “kids” coming into the fire service today.

The veterans don’t think today’s recruits share the same values as those who are currently leading us. And they certainly don’t have the same appreciation for the traditions and discipline of the fire service. Community service is not in their blood as it is in ours. Or at least that’s their complaint.

The first question I ask is: Whose fault is that? Have we failed as parents, role models and mentors?

My second question is a more important challenge: Who better? Who better to re-instill the values of the fire service that have made it and America great? Who better to bring back the principles our communities need?

I then ask you: If not us, who?

“Reality Check: Understand them or not, like them or not – they are the future of the fire service. The reality is that there is no other generation from a parallel universe about to swoop down and save the volunteer fire service. They are it. Get over it. Get on with it.”

The fire service was built on the values of pride, honor, loyalty, trustworthiness, integrity and community service. Last time I checked, that’s exactly why the American public trusts nobody, no other profession more than they trust firefighters – nobody.

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Cumberland County
Fire companies struggling to get volunteers
Local fire companies struggle to identify ways to attract, keep volunteer firefighters
By Becca Gregg, Sentinel Reporter, April 4, 2010

With spring heating up and summer right around the corner, local fire companies are gearing up for yet another season of ever-increasing volunteer shortages and losses.

Formerly a thriving activity, officials say volunteer numbers have slipped in recent years with shifting priorities and increasing family and time constraints.

In an attempt to recruit new members, fire companies across the region have upped the ante and are offering incentives to both attract and retain volunteer firefighters.

From gift cards to retirement packages, the term “volunteer” has taken on an entirely new meaning.

Why the shortage?

According to Deputy Fire Chief Mark Farrell of the Monroe Township Volunteer Fire Company, membership numbers have been hit hard by changing times.

“In general, when our parents were kids and when our grandparents were kids, there was more of a community atmosphere. It was easier to have people available than it is today,” he says. “Most of us have so many obligations on us today that it’s hard to get people to take the extra time. Something like the volunteer service, you really have to spend a lot of time to be trained and be beneficial.”

And despite declining membership, the amount of training required by the state is seemingly on a constant rise.

“The training it takes just to be an entry-level firefighter is right around 220 hours just to go in and do the basic,” Upper Allen Township Fire Chief Jim Salter says. “Those hours on top of just learning about the fire station is very time consuming and it takes a lot of time up that you don’t have.”

Adds Farrell, “When you’re at your (day) job you can spend eight hours a day with someone. In a volunteer company, we train a few hours a week, and when the pager goes off there’s not a lot of time to sit down and talk about it. You don’t want to lose somebody in the wayside.”

In addition to the level of commitment, Salter says, the age of court battles and widespread lawsuits has opened up a new can of liability that many people don’t want to risk.

“When you join a volunteer fire department, you’re opened up to a lot of scrutiny. Some of it’s unwarranted, some of it is deserved,” Salter says, adding, “It’s kind of scary that when you get called into court for something and you have the chance of being put under the microscope. You run the risk of getting in bigger trouble.”