Fire Report: Steady Budget, New Ambulance for East Farmingdale

For 85 years the has been serving a unique and challenging 16 square mile fire district, very distinct from the others on Long Island.

“Our volunteer firemen have to be very well-versed in all types of fire and rescue situations and be cross-trained for fire, rescue and haz-mat calls," said newly-elected Fire Chief Michael Kilbridge. The detailed training is necessary because the fire district is a mix of industrial and residential buildings and includes , , large warehouses, hotels, indoor tennis courts and .

"Our calls range from house fires and automobile accidents to large jet airplane collisions and children’s emergencies at the amusement park," he said. "We have to be ready for anything at any time.”

The district began in 1926 when a few fire fighters broke away from the Farmingdale Fire Department and established one of the first departments in Suffolk County. They called it the East End Fire Department because it aptly described where the district was located - east of Farmingdale.

Today, the district operates three stations in East Farmingdale with the headquarters at 930 Conklin Street. The department received 2,073 calls in 2010, an increase of 1% over 2009. Kilbridge says that the department is holding steady with 100 volunteers.

“We’re a very family-oriented department where a lot of our members are father and son, brothers, uncles, and extended family,” he said. “It’s hard to keep new members. They volunteer with the best of intentions but sometimes the amount of time needed to devote to us is too much. We try to help them as best we can with flexible training sessions and we have an outreach retention committee to hold onto them.”

Last year, one of the most serious calls was on the afternoon of Sept. 4. One of the East Farmingdale ambulances was returning from an alarm and found a working general alarm at food importer Sirob Imports at 21 Gear Ave. off of Wellwood Ave. The one-story commercial building, measuring 200 x 200 sq. ft., operated a machine making spice plastic bottles. The machine caught on fire and spread throughout the building.

Three East Farmingdale firefighters were caught in a wall collapse as they were forcing entry into the building. Two firefighters were transported to Good Samaritan Hospital. One sustained a serious injury and the second was treated for his injuries and released from the hospital. Several other firefighters were transported for minor injuries. Firefighters immediately went to an exterior operation and East Farmingdale requested back-up from fire departments in North Lindenhurst, West Babylon, and Lindenhurst. Additional departments came to the scene for mutual aid and relief purposes.

“This was a very serious fire and we were all emotionally connected,” Kilbridge said.

As the department prepares for the new year ahead, Kilbridge plans to purchase a new ambulance in 2011 and a new pumper in 2012.

“We’re constantly looking to renew our equipment,” he said. “It’s in the best interests of our community.” While the economy has taken a toll on all fire departments including East Farmingdale, Kilbridge and his department have held the budget down, submitting a zero increase to the Town of Babylon for 2011.

“It’s hard for us because we do need to purchase new equipment but we try to show the community that we’re just like them,” Kilbridge said. “We too need to hold our budget in-line. And we’re required to have a professional accountant audit our finances, which are also reviewed by the Town of Babylon every year.”

Fire safety will be a continuing effort for the East Farmingdale district during the upcoming year. The department will offer free safety prevention programs, fire protection and distribution of fire alarms and carbon monoxide alarms to the community.