Haddam Volunteer Fire Company: Missing Swimmer, Tropical Storm Irene, Euthenized Horse, Man Stuck in a Well, Truck Crash

Haddam Fire August 2011 Activity 

Submitted by: Bob Norton, Public Relations Liason for Haddam Volunteer Fire Co.

Members of the Haddam Volunteer Fire Co. responded to 60 calls for emergency services in August.  The breakdown of calls is as follows:

Medical Emergencies -      30                  

Fires, alarms etc. -              9                    

Motor Vehicle Crashes -      8                   

Marine Emergencies -          1                   

Other – wires down, etc. -  12

Fire Company members were extremely busy with several significant emergency scenes as well as many hours put in with Tropical Storm Irene.  The month started off with a large water rescue operation looking for a at the Haddam Meadows State Park.  Haddam was assisted by boats from East Haddam and Chester, as well as dive teams from Middletown, South District Fire, and Portland. 

The following day, Firefighters responded to a barn struck by lightening where the homeowner and – the horse needing to be euthanized.  Later in the month, a truck lost its fuel tank on Route 81 creating a call that lasted for more than 4 hours.  Firefighters, assisted by State DEEP and a private hazardous material contractor, protected local streams from diesel fuel running down the road.  On August 20th, a on Route 9, then crashed down the embankment into a telephone pole on Route 81.  The driver was ejected in the median of Route 9, and was transported to Hartford Hospital via Lifestar Helicopter.  The cleanup including a large amount of service equipment took approximately 5 hours.

On August 26th, Firefighters responded to a man who had while attempting to work on it.  Upon arrival, a victim was spotted approximately 35 feet down a well, injured from a fall.  Firefighters monitored the air inside the well, and lowered a rope to stabilize the patient from falling beneath the surface of the water.  Assisted by members of the Middletown Fire Department’s Tech/Rope Rescue Team, the patient was hoisted out of the well approximately 1 ½ hours after he had fallen in.  He was transported by Haddam Ambulance and Middlesex Hospital Paramedics to the Emergency Department.

Early in the week of August 22nd, for a potential Hurricane began.  When all work for was completed about 2 weeks later, hundreds of man hours had been put in by Fire Company Members.  Planning was started by adapting written guidelines published by the State Fire Prevention and Control Commission, then creating a plan specific to the Haddam Volunteer Fire Co.  Chain saws were started, portable pumps setup to pump water from a portable drop tank, and gas/diesel cans topped off several nights before the arrival of the storm.  Food was purchased by the Haddam Volunteer Fire Company Auxiliary for Firefighters working during the storm. 

Haddam started feeling the effects of Irene Saturday, August 27th in the afternoon.  Bands of rain and wind began buffeting the town, causing little more than a nuisance while residents in town made final storm preparations.  Fire Company members made final preparations of the fire houses to keep them safe and be ready for anything.  By 8:00pm, it was clear that the storm was tracking right into the central part of Connecticut and emergency staffing would be necessary. Firefighters were standing by ready to respond, while notifications for full manpower coverage went out to begin at 10:00pm. 

Overnight the rain came down, and the wind howled. Many members stayed at Station #1, sleeping in any available office or spare room.  At approximately 7:00am Sunday morning, the calls started coming in for trees and wires down, blocking access to many parts of town. Around noon, a medical emergency was handled on Wiese Albert Road, where access was gained from Blue Hills Road through Durham.  The patient was transported in a 4-wheel drive truck to an awaiting ambulance as the road was impassible for emergency vehicles.  At approximately 2:00pm, Haddam Fire received a request from Deep River to standby at their Headquarters station while they were battling a structure fire.  Back in town, streets were surveyed and plans made in case additional emergencies were received.  With more than 30 streets impassible, alternate response plans were put into place.

Emergency Operations wound down at sunset on Sunday, August 28th, but water in houses and electrical emergency calls continued throughout the rest of the week.  Members of the Fire Police provided scene safety support for Northeast Utilities and other line/tree crews while power was being restored in various parts of town.  Station #1 became and staging point for local and out of state crews.  Several members, assisted by staff and vehicles from All Waste, Inc. obtained water and meals from a FEMA staging area in East Hartford for families without power.  In all, approximately 375 hours of time was put in by members of the Haddam Volunteer Fire Co.   Chief Gary Klare thanked all members for leaving their families and putting in tremendous amounts of time to protect the town’s people.

More information on the activities of the Haddam Volunteer Fire Co. and ways you can get involved can be found on our website – www.HaddamFire.com.