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Danville Fire Department 2006 Annual Report

The Danville Fire Department has a roster of 22 active members and 2 Fire Explorers (training cadets). 16 members of the department currently hold National Registry of EMT (Emergency Medical Technicians) certification. EMS and Fire training is provided at least twice a month to keep our members up to date on certifications and to keep our skills sharp.

We are very proud of the members who have enrolled in state and national courses to better themselves and the department:  Captain Robert Sharpe, FF Joe DeRusha, FF Matt Dowd and John Hughes successfully completed and passed the National Registry EMT course and FF Brian Delahunty, FF Scott LaBelle and Steven Woitkun Jr. are currently attending the course. When they receive their certifications, 86% of our members will hold EMT certification. Captain Robert Sharpe and FF Joe DeRusha completed NH Firefighter Level II training and FF Scott LaBelle completed NHFFI training.

Part/Time FF/EMTs have been manning the station weekdays since your approval in April 2005. This has been a great asset to the citizens of Danville. Response times to emergencies have been dramatically cut and on-duty personnel have been available for:

  • Well-being checks
  • Public Assists
  • Burn Permits
  • Fire Inspections & Investigations
  • Fire Prevention & Public Education
  • Vehicle Maintenance
  • Station Maintenance & upgrades

There were 3 well-involved structure fires this past year that were extinguished rapidly due to the quick response of the DFD. In each case the damage was held to a minimum considering how involved the fire was when the call came in.

As always, we depend on our dedicated on-call force to answer Fire & EMS calls 24/7, 365 days a year. These men and women are highly trained and dedicated professionals who are always ready to help their neighbors.

In 2006 we answered a total of 325 calls for Fire & EMS, a 4.1% increase over 2005. The May floods severely impacted our resources with 29 calls for service in a period of a few days. Once again the men and women of the DFD were there to assist with evacuation, pumping out basements, road closures and property conservation.

I would like to remind the residents of Danville the importance of displaying your proper house number. Reflective numbers at the end of the driveway and mounted to the residence will assist us in finding you when you need help fast. It is extremely frustrating when we are called for help and we experience delays due to non-existent or inadequate house numbers. In Medical and Fire Emergencies, “Seconds count.”

The awards for the 2006 Assistance to Fire Fighter Grants have been announced and sadly the Town of Danville was not awarded the grant request we submitted. We will continue to pursue any grant monies available in 2007 to update or replace our aging equipment. Firefighters Corey Ward and Tim Griswold have been instrumental in the grant process and have put in many hours completing the cumbersome grant application process.

We ask you, the voter, to please support our 2007 Warrant Articles. We have 3 on the ballot: 1) To dispose of any surplus equipment. This is equipment that we no longer use, which might be valuable to another department and the money will go to the General Fund to offset the tax burden; 2) To add $40,000 to our Fire Truck Capital Reserve Fund for future fire truck purchases.  This allows us to save money for future replacement of obsolete equipment; 3) We are proposing to remove $31,200 from the Capital Reserve Fund to purchase a F350 pick-up to replace a 1978 Dodge pick-up. This vehicle will be used for:

  • Wildland & Structure Fires
    • Fire scene clean-up & carrying hose
    • Personnel transport
    • Carry equipment
  • Department Business
    • Inspections & Prevention
    • Training events
    • Pick-up supplies from vendors
    • Building maintenance
    • Weather Emergencies; downed wires, closed roads, etc.
    • Anytime a vehicle is needed to conduct efficient DFD operations

It we are successful in acquiring this new truck, we would reassign 13U1 to the North Danville Fire Station. This would allow FF/EMTs to respond to emergencies in the North end of town with a well equipped vehicle to deal with medical and fire emergencies.

Seasonal Burn Permits are very successful here in Danville. Once you have been issued one, you need only to call the station to inform us that you will be burning. The state has made many changes in how, when and what you may burn and the 2007 permits reflect those changes. Please come on in and fill out or renew your Seasonal Burn Permit. You will see our new permit on our website.

In closing, since I became Chief in May of 2004, one of my goals was to have a well-equipped, highly-trained fire department that was able to mitigate any emergency encountered by a Danville resident. With the support of the residents and dedication of DFD members, we have accomplished that goal. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Danville Fire Association for their continued support through equipment donations and I thank you the voter for helping us help you.

EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE - 189

  • RESCUE - 175
  • MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENTS - 14

FIRES - 45

  • STRUCTURE FIRE - 7
  • CHIMNEY FIRES - 3
  • OUTSIDE FIRES - 6
  • SMOKE INVESTIGATION - 19
  • UNAUTHORIZED BURN - 9

MUTUAL AID

  • RECEIVED - 2
  • GIVEN - 13

OTHER

  • ALARM ACTIVATION - 15
  • CO DETECTOR - 7
  • PUBLIC ASSIST - 13
  • HAZMAT - 2
  • LIGHTENING STRIKE - 2
  • SERVICE CALLS - 12
  • WEATHER - 28
  • TRAINING EVENTS - 41