Flourtown Fire Company

Volunteers Serving Springfield Township

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Endless Winter Taxes Volunteers to be More Vigilant

The Winter of 2013-2014 is going down in history as one of the most severe and highest in snowfall. For the fire service it means responding to many more emergency calls for downed wires, fallen tree lines, and vehicle accidents on slick roads. Increased snow fall also means shoveling out hydrants and putting in place winter tactics such as shortening the time out in the elements and keeping hose lines running to keep them from freezing. On several occasions as the area was hit with large snowstorms, crews voluntarily stander at the firehouse around the clock to respond rapidly at the height of the storms. These crews also criss-crossed the township to shovel out hydrants that residents did not. It’s a good practice, that if you live near a hydrant to shovel it out as much as 3 feet around the hydrant so firefighters can properly hook up hose lines to battle a fire. Photos by Robert Wilmot, Jr.

Flourtown Accepts Donation from Wells Fargo

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Recently, Flourtown Fire Company accepted a $1,000 donation from Wells Fargo Bank as part of its Community Partner program.

Above, Director, George Wilmot, Jr. from Flourtown, (third from left) accepts a check from area Wells Fargo representatives. We thank Wells Fargo for its commitment to volunteerism and being a true partner in the community.

Flourtown Welcomes The Community for Fire Prevention Open House – Oct. 7

2013_NFPAPlease bring out the family to Flourtown Fire Company’s annual Fire Prevention Open House, Monday, October 7 from 6 – 8 PM. We’ll have food, demonstrations, and equipment tours of all we offer the community.

We also have some fire prevention tips for you, see you Monday night, we look forward to seeing you:

Cooking

  • Two out of every 5 home fires start in the kitchen.
  • Unattended cooking was a factor in 34%o of reported home cooking fires.
  • Two-thirds of home cooking fires started with ignition of food or other cooking materials.
  • Children under the age of 5 face a higher risk of non-fire burns associated with cooking than being burned in a cooking fire.

 

Heating

  • The leading factor contributing to heating fires was failure to clean, creosote from solid fueled heating equipment, primarily chimneys.
  • Portable or fixed space heaters were involved in one-third of home heating fires and four out of five home heating deaths
  • Half of home heating fire deaths resulted from fires caused by heating equipment too close to products that can burn, such as upholstered furniture, clothing, mattresses, or bedding
  • In recent years, heating has become the 2nd leading cause of home fires, fire deaths, and injuries.

 

Smoking Materials

  • During 2007-2011 smoking materials caused an estimated 17,900 home structure fires, resulting in 580 deaths, 1,280 injuries and $509 million in direct property damage
  • Sleep was a factor in one-third of the home smoking material fire deaths
  • Possible alcohol impairment was a factor in one in five of home smoking fire deaths

 

Smoke Alarms

  • Almost two-thirds of reported home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms
  • Working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in home fires in half
  • Hardwired alarms operated 92% of the time, while battery powered alarms operated 77% of the time

Info compiled by Flourtown Firefighter Jim Belcher via NFPA

2013 – A Half-Way Review of Flourtown Fire in Action – VIDEO

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2013 has been a busy year for Flourtown Fire Company so far, here’s a look back at the what we’ve been up to, some fires, some training, some rescues, always exciting, stop by Monday nights at 7PM to hear how you can join the team.

Video by Firefighter Greg Fasold.

Forcible Entry Training with Prospect Park Fire Company

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On April 22, FF Zappacosta, Captain Huber and Chief Signora from Prospect Park Fire Company (Station 8) conducted a Forcible Entry class at Flourtown Fire Company. The Prospect and Flourtown crews worked from 1900 till 2200 on conventional forcible entry techniques, for both inward and outward swinging doors and special heavy duty security doors. It was a great night of training and we thank Prospect Park for sharing their expertise with us.

Special thanks go out to Flourtown Captain Chris Manning for facilitating this great opportunity and nights training! Photos by Bob Wilmot, Jr.