GFD been busy
by Rachel Hunter
Gouverneur Fire Chief Tom Conklin on June 20 gave the Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees at its regular meeting an update on what the fire department has been doing since Jan. 1.
“So far this year, we have responded to 236 calls,” Chief Conklin said. “We’ve had a few big stops in the village this year. One of them was on Austin Street. We had a report of a bedroom fire. There were five units in the building, and we contained it to the bedroom, and four units got to stay in the house that same night. It was good stop. I believe the unit itself they lost a cat and another pet but other than that, the fire was contained to the bedroom.
“We’ve had a few days this month when we responded to over five calls a day.
“Water Operations Class was hosted right here in Gouverneur. Over the last few months you have seen trucks along the river, training. That was a state credential class that we held in Gouverneur. There was 13 of us who took the class. It was the first time it had been offered here in the North Country. It just helps you utilize maximum water flow with the littlest amount of equipment. It was a good class to take.
“We did do some hydrant testing. The village hydrant on Main Street, the new 16-inch line can flow approximately 1699 gallons a minute. So that is definitely significant enough for any kind of major fire on the east side of the town.
“We just had six guys get done with EVOC training, which Emergency Vehicle Operations Class. So you are going to see some fire trucks around the village in the next several months with them training on our trucks, so that they can drive our vehicles. EVOC is the first step that they have to take through the state to drive the trucks and then they have to do a three-step class at the station to be checked off on each apparatus.
“Our apparatus certifications and pump certifications will be done in August. This is the yearly certification for our ladder truck due to its age. The federal and state government mandates that our engines be certified every year with the pumps.
“The first responder program. The paperwork has been all submitted to the state. We are waiting on the state’s approval. Right now they came up with a few questions and Jeff Gibson and Mark Deavers from the rescue squad are handling them. So we are still waiting on our Department of Health number so we can start our first responders.
“EMT class will start in August for our members that are going to be involved with the first responder class. I think we have 12 that will be taking the class. The class starts in August and it goes through to December, two or three days a week.
“The trusty boat that we have… the motor blew in it under a training circumstance. It was a 1986 motor, so it was old. We sent it to be repaired, but it was unrepairable so we ended up purchasing a used 2002 motor from the Clayton Marina. That was the cheapest price that we got.
“We do plan on hosting our annual fire extinguisher training at the fair throughout the week. We will be posting the schedule on our Facebook page once it gets closer to the fair.
“We attended the breast cancer walk, memorial parade, flag day parade and NNY Fire Convention parade in Lake Placid.
“The members and I would like to thank the board for their continued support.”
The next meeting of the Village of Gouverneur Board of Trustees is to be held on July 18 at 7 p.m. in the municipal courtroom.