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Wright Township Fire Department plans event for the community to learn about what its volunteers do.
The Wright Township Fire Department is planning an open house in April to educate residents about what its members do. Firefighters, from left are: Chris Kuhar, Randy Case, Tony Tirado and Dawn DeLong.
Times Leader Staff Photo/Fred Adams
Battling two major floods and a tornado can be expensive and exhausting for a fire department. Taking on all three in the same year is downright demanding.
Within a seven-month span, the Wright Township Fire Department faced three disasters while performing its regular duties. The all-volunteer department assisted many residents and accomplished the tasks but the work didn’t come without a cost.
“It was a heavy workload and we have quite a bit of equipment to replace,” said Randy Case, a department trustee. “We were called out more than 200 times last year.”
Like any volunteer department, donations – in time and money – are vital. The department relies on 30 members, 20 of whom are active, and protects an 18-square-mile municipality that has swelled to more than 5,600 residents. It also protects the Crestwood Industrial Park, two nursing homes, two schools and a railroad system.
While the township is growing, Case said the department, both financially and with members, hasn’t kept pace.
“We are an all-volunteer department with men and women who are extraordinarily proud of what we do and proud of our community,” Case said. “But there are some unique things about this township, like the industrial park and nursing homes, which require us to have special training and special equipment. That’s where the costs hit us the hardest – purchasing the equipment needed to respond to and protect these areas.”
Case said the department recently purchased protective gear that provides an extra 10 to 15 seconds to escape an out-of-control situation. The gear costs an average of $1,500 per firefighter – a hefty but worthwhile expense, he said.
Case said the department also suffers from a popular misconception. Many newcomers have moved from areas that had paid fire departments, and they aren’t aware that Wright Township relies on volunteers.
“I’m 100 percent that’s part if not all of it,” Case said. “We’ve had people say we’re a paid fire company, and that’s a big misconception. We all have jobs, and it isn’t uncommon for some of us to go to a fire all night, come home and get a shower and head right to work.”
The department is attempting to educate the community about what it does and how.
It will hold an open house in April to give the community a chance to meet those who protect them throughout the year.
“We want the community to know who we are and how much it costs for equipment,” Case said. “Maybe some will even like to join the department and help out.”
Open house
The Wright Township Fire Department will hold an open house from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 21 at the fire hall on South Main Road. Numerous organizations will attend the event, including the American Red Cross, Pennsylvania State Police and local police departments. For information, call 868-3765.
“IT WAS A heavy workload and we have quite a bit of equipment
to replace. We were called out more than 200 times last year.”
Randy Case Wright Township Fire Department trustee