The South Sumter area is under a threat of severe weather for the next five hours. There have been multiple warnings and multiple reports of damage upstream from our area. The current radar tells the story and is included below. The area remains under a watch until 0700 Tuesday morning.
The Thanksgiving Holiday is over and it is time for Christmas and all the fun and decorations that come with it. If a fresh cut tree is part of your families decorations please take the time to water the tree and make sure the tree is in a position that keeps it away from potential sources of ignition. Take a few moments to watch the video and help keep your family safe for the holidays.
Special Thanks to NIST for preparing this video.
The newest addition to the fleet of vehicles that protects South Sumter will be arriving on Wednesday, December 1st. The new tanker was made possible due to a FEMA grant and will replace to aging pieces of apparatus that have served the Siloam Fire Department for many years. The two vehicles that are being retired are the department’s 1972 Seagrave Pumper and 1970 International Tanker. The new tanker will carry more water than both of the retired units combined, and will also have roughly the same pumping capacity of the old pumper. This trucks sister unit will be arriving at Ward before the end of the year. When the Ward unit is placed into service there will be three tankers that are nearly identical protecting South Sumter.
Block II of the Alabama Volunteer Firefighter Certification is winding down. Candidates have two more skills nights before the state test for this block next week. The last portion of Block II involves search and rescue drills, and in typical fashion we must change things a little bit to make it more interesting in South Sumter. It has been a great pleasure for all the instructors to work with the candidates in this class and we certainly see some top notch men and women emerging from this program. Here are a few of the pictures from the last few skill nights.
Siloam Asst. Chief Hughes instructs Boligee Firefighter Walter Staples on ropes and knots.
Whitfield Firefighter Johnnie Steele works on her knot skills.
Bellamy Firefighter Cedric Bell and Belmont-McDowell Firefighter Kayla Smith work together on their knots.
York Captain Kim Moss, and Boligee Chief Walter Taylor prepare for the hoisting drill.
Livingston Firefighter Austin Coar and Boligee Firefighter Walter Staples prepare for the Search and Rescue Drill.
Livingston Captain Nancy Larkin instructs the first set of students to come into the building. While firefighters will not be operating in total darkness in most cases it is sound training to learn to do everything in total darkness. If the worst happens you should be prepared for it.
Primary team underway!
A simulated collapse brought about a response from the secondary squad (RIT).
Ward/Siloam Firefighter Ashley Harvison walks Belmont-McDowell Firefighter Kayla Smith back to the starting point.
Chief Vaughan starting another crew into the building.
Last crew of the night making their rounds.
The construction crews are working hard to complete the new bays at Siloam. The station and the truck are on schedule to be finished around November 19th and everyone is excited about the changes. Below are a few pictures of the progress being made by the crews at the station.
A member of the South Sumter family has been pulled for award by the Department of Homeland Security for their 2010 grant. This grant will purchase much needed bunker gear as well as new self contained breathing apparatuses and hose. This will allow the department to replace the equipment that is currently in service with new equipment and remove quite a bit of hose that has been in service for some time. The grant received by the Ward department brings the three year grant total in the South Sumter area to $718.000.00 in federal grant money. In addition to the 201o grant for equipment, Ward also will be receiving a new tanker within the next few weeks thanks to the 2009 grant that was award earlier this year. A full listing of grants and what was purchased with the money will be made later in the month. The quality of service offered by the departments in South Sumter has been greatly impacted by the money we have received form these much needed grants.
Been a while since updates were posted to the site and we would like to apologize. On Monday, November 1, the Cuba Fire Department responded to the York exit to assist the York Fire Department with a transfer truck that was on fire. Cuba Engine 2 arrived and found the body of the fire knocked down by YFD. Engine 2 deployed a preconnect and brought the foam into action to complete putting out the fire. The truck was hauling large rolls of paper and were quite difficult to extinguish. All units were returned to the station safely and that is what counts!
One of the heavy rolls of paper after being removed from the trailer.
Cuba Engine 2 operating on scene.
Damage to the trailer.
