What State do you live in?

MD

Type of Organization

Volunteer Fire Department

Job Function

Other

Years With Department/Agency

89

Dept. Web Site:

http://www.bhvfd14.org

About Me:

The Berwyn Heights Volunteer Fire Department, Station 14 (Prince George's County, Maryland)is located just inside the Capital Beltway, about 1 mile east of the University of Maryland's College Park campus and 5 miles northeast of the nation's capital, Washington D.C.

We proudly serve a diverse population in the surrounding communities of Berwyn Heights, College Park and Greenbelt. We also respond to incidents with the neighboring fire stations in the Beltsville, Chillum, Glenn Dale, Hillandale, Hyattsville, Lanham, Laurel and Riverdale areas.

Station 14 currently operates four types of apparatus to handle the emergencies and incidents that occur in the area - a heavy rescue squad, a tractor-drawn aerial ladder truck, a basic life support ambulance and a rescue boat. The rescue squad, which carries up to 8 firefighters, primarily responds to motor vehicle collisions on the 60 miles of busy highways that are in our dispatch area, but it also responds to structural fires to carry out search and rescue duties. The tiller truck, with a 106 foot aerial ladder and capacity for 9 firefighters, is dispatched to structure types ranging from single story houses to 4 story garden apartments to 18 story high-rises. We also operate three chief's vehicles and a utility truck for support needs.

The Berwyn Heights VFD is a combination department, with both volunteer and career firefighter/EMTs working together. The station is staffed on week days from 0700 to 1500 hours by Prince George's County career personnel. Nights, weekends and holidays however, are staffed exclusively by volunteers. The volunteer and career members enjoy an excellent professional relationship, working side-by-side with overlapping schedules to ensure continuous, 24 hour-a-day station staffing.

We are always looking for more volunteer members. No previous experience is necessary, and all training and equipment are provided at no cost. All operational members are Maryland certified emergency medical technicians. Firefighter/EMTs are trained on all of the apparatus for all types of incidents; EMT-only members handle EMS and rescue incidents, but do not have to become firefighters. We also have non-riding administrative members who perform additional support duties. If you are interested in joining, or would like to learn more about volunteering with our organization, please feel free to contact us. We'd be happy to answer any questions, give you a tour or even take you on a ride-a-long.

Facebook or Other Online Profile:

http://www.facebook.com/berwynheightsvfd