News

Tropical Storm Ernesto greeted the Delmarva Peninsula on Friday, September 1st, with a flurry of howling wind and rain causing emergency crews and personnel to be pressed into action. Predicted wind speeds of 25 to 35mph were blown away with huge gusts of over 60mph. Rain for the area reached 6 inches in some spots. The members of the Millville Volunteer Fire Company were just one of the many groups who responded to the task. During the seventeen-hour time frame of 1:09 p.m. on Friday through 5:57 a.m. on Saturday, the Millville Volunteer Fire Company was kept busy responding to a total of twenty-nine emergency calls. Ambulance personnel answered seven medical calls, while the firefighters were dispatched to the other twenty-two alarms. The high winds and heavy rains created a hazard for all of the emergency personnel. Ambulance drivers literally fought the wind as they drove patients to the area hospitals. Firefighters had to maneuver around debris on the roads, as well as be on the continual lookout for falling trees and branches. In one four-hour period from 6 to 10 p.m. on Friday, the firefighters responded to twelve alarms. Since firefighters volunteered for standby duty at the firehouse throughout the entire storm, emergency calls were handled as soon as they came in. No major incidents or injuries were suffered in the District. A breakdown of the twenty-nine emergency calls were: 11 Wires Down/Arching, 6 Service Calls, 3 Transformer Fires, 1 Automatic Fire Alarm, 1 Outside Fire, 7 Ambulance calls. "DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS PROUDLY SERVING OUR COMMUNITY"