Floral Park
New York
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Floral Park Fire Department
History
It was on February 11, 1907, that the Alert Engine Co. #1 was formed, when a group of men banded together to form a fellowship in order to help their neighbors in time of need. These men left us with a feeling of great pride and tradition which still carries over today.
Yes, gone are the fire horses and the steam engines, even the fire horn, enter the adoption of gasoline and diesel driven engines, task force nozzles, foam and state-of-the-art breathing apparatus and most importantly a paging system. Come to think when Alert first started, it was only a hose reel with some 700 feet of hose. Today, the Alert Co. carries well over 3,000 feet of hose plus many hand tools which our predecessors never knew existed and that would boggle their minds. Who would have thought that the use of radio would be such a help to today's volunteer opposed to the speaking trumpet used by the Chiefs and company officers in years past.
The volunteers of the past were a proud group of men and this certainly hasn't diminished over the years. At one time, the Alert Co. had three Ex-Chiefs of the Department who had put in 180 years of firefighting experience. They were Ward L. Hoffman - Chief 1928, Joseph A. Odermatt - Chief 1944 and Edward G. Meserole - Chief 1954.
The Alert Engine Co. #1 first piece of apparatus was the 1907 hand held hose cart. In 1909, Alert had a horse drawn cart which was unique because the horse was pure white. In 1936, Alert became motorized with the chain driven American LaFrance which had an open cab, a hand crank siren and driven on the right side. In 1941 Alert acquired a Ward LaFrance. In 1961 we bought a 750 g.p.m. Mack. Today, in 1993, Alert Engine Co. operates a 1981 1500 g.p.m. Mack.
It was on February 11, 1907, that the Alert Engine Co. #1 was formed, when a group of men banded together to form a fellowship in order to help their neighbors in time of need. These men left us with a feeling of great pride and tradition which still carries over today.
Yes, gone are the fire horses and the steam engines, even the fire horn, enter the adoption of gasoline and diesel driven engines, task force nozzles, foam and state-of-the-art breathing apparatus and most importantly a paging system. Come to think when Alert first started, it was only a hose reel with some 700 feet of hose. Today, the Alert Co. carries well over 3,000 feet of hose plus many hand tools which our predecessors never knew existed and that would boggle their minds. Who would have thought that the use of radio would be such a help to today's volunteer opposed to the speaking trumpet used by the Chiefs and company officers in years past.
The volunteers of the past were a proud group of men and this certainly hasn't diminished over the years. At one time, the Alert Co. had three Ex-Chiefs of the Department who had put in 180 years of firefighting experience. They were Ward L. Hoffman - Chief 1928, Joseph A. Odermatt - Chief 1944 and Edward G. Meserole - Chief 1954.
The Alert Engine Co. #1 first piece of apparatus was the 1907 hand held hose cart. In 1909, Alert had a horse drawn cart which was unique because the horse was pure white. In 1936, Alert became motorized with the chain driven American LaFrance which had an open cab, a hand crank siren and driven on the right side. In 1941 Alert acquired a Ward LaFrance. In 1961 we bought a 750 g.p.m. Mack. Today, in 1993, Alert Engine Co. operates a 1981 1500 g.p.m. Mack.