| Arundel Fire Department Inc. Arundel Fire-Rescue A brief History On May 6th, 1959 fifteen residents of the Town met in the Arundel Town Hall and organized the Arundel Fire Department. By the end of 1959 they had 43 active members and had fought 12 fires. Members were notified of fires by a telephone tree calling arrangement. The telephone number to report fires was Yukon 52422. The first Fire Chief was Stan Merrill. The fire trucks were originally stored in a snowplow garage located near Tri-Town Fuels on Old Alfred Road. On January 6th, 1960, the Arundel Fire Department was incorporated. The Town of Arundel gave the Durrell School building to the Dept for use as a meeting room and the Irving School building and the North Chapel School building for salvage. The land occupied by the Durrell School had originally been deeded to the Town of Arundel in 1899 for �school house purposes only�. In 1971 the descendents of the Durrell family relinquished all rights to the property and gave the Arundel Fire Dept clear title to the land. At the March 7th, 1960 Arundel Town meeting the sum of $600.00 was appropriated for the Arundel Fire Department. During the summer of 1960, the members of the Dept erected the cinder block 3 bay Central Station that remained in use until 1998. In 1964, George Merrill Jr. (Bud) was elected as Chief. The 50th Anniversary of the Town of Arundel occurred in 1965. During 1965 the Arundel Fire Dept responded to 40 fires (10 structures) � including a woods fire of 260 acres. A used Seagraves fire engine was purchased from Eliot, ME with donations collected by the Dept. (This engine is now in the hands of a private collector who is a member of the Eliot Fire Dept.) Carle Danis was elected as Chief and served for the next 15 years. At the March 7th, 1966 Town meeting, the Dept requested $1,375. for the purchase a fire alarm siren from the Federal Government. This siren was in daily use until 1995 when it was discontinued. 1966 32 calls for assistance were answered. (7 structures) At the March 8th, 1968 Arundel Town meeting the purchase of a new fire engine for $17,500. was authorized. The new engine was placed in service on November 22, 1968. This engine is now known as Engine 303 and was still in service as a reserve engine, located at the sub-station on Old Post Road until the fall of 2000. The first sub-station was opened on November 23, 1968 in Donald Maurice�s barn. 1968 41 calls for assistance were answered. (8 structures) 1969 28 calls for assistance were answered. (8 structures) At the March 16th, 1970 Arundel Town meeting the annual appropriation request was increased from $500. to $1,000. 1971 59 calls for assistance were answered. (8 structures) During 1972, the members of the Fire Dept. built a cinder block addition onto the Central Station to serve as a meeting room. All labor and materials were donated. 1972 51 calls for assistance were answered. At the March 1973 Town Meeting approval was given to purchase a new fire engine with Federal Revenue Sharing funds. The new engine was placed in service in December of 1973 and is now known as Engine 302. This engine is still in service today and is located at Central Station. 1974 79 calls for assistance were answered. (5 structures) 1975 The present sub-station on Old Post Road was built on land generously leased to the Dept for $1. per year by Norman & Fernande Gregoire. Members of the Department donated all labor for the construction. 1975 65 calls for assistance were answered (6 structures) 1976 60 calls for assistance were answered. (5 structures) 1977 The first full time fireman for the Town of Arundel was hired through the federally funded CETA program. 1978 103 calls for assistance were answered (13 structures) 1979 167 calls for assistance were answered (17 structures) At the March 11th, 1980 Arundel Town meeting the purchase of a new fire engine for $50,000. was authorized. 1980 Engine 304 was placed in service. This engine is still in daily service and is located at the sub-station. Richard Madore was elected as Chief. 1980 184 calls for assistance were answered (18 structures) 1981 152 calls for assistance were answered (8 structures) 1981 Don Fleurant was elected as Chief. 1982 94 calls for assistance were answered (4 structures) 1983 94 calls for assistance were answered. (6 structures) 1984 Mark LeBlanc is elected as Chief and serves for 10 years. 1984 The members of the Department raise funds for the purchase of a former ambulance for use as a utility vehicle. It was used to carry generators, spare air bottles, fans, lights, cribbing, Jaws of Life, etc. This vehicle was taken out of service in late 1998 for safety reasons and a replacement is being budgeted for purchase in July 1999. 1985 The purchase of an 1800-gallon tank truck was authorized for $48,000. This truck is now known as Tank 312 and is in service at Central Station. At the June 1988 Town meeting $10,000. was approved for materials for expansion of the Old Post Road substation. Members of the Dept donated all labor for the expansion. At the June 1989 Town meeting approval was given to set aside $12,000. as the start of a building fund for the eventual replacement of the Central station. This building fund eventually provided $300,000. of the $400,000. construction cost. 1991 156 calls for assistance were answered June 12 1991 The purchase of a new fire engine for $140,000. was authorized. Engine 301 was placed in service in February 1992. This engine is located at Central Station. The AFD Auxiliary purchases and donates a used four-wheel drive pickup truck. This is remodeled by members of the Dept. and placed into service as 305 a brush/utility truck . This pickup is still in service today. 1992 153 calls for assistance were answered 1994 Ed Leskowski is elected as Chief 1994 175 calls for assistance were answered 1995 John Nest is elected as Chief. 1995 202 calls for assistance were answered 1996 202 calls for assistance were answered 1998 The Town of Arundel purchases it�s first ambulance. A-300 is located at Central Station. The name of the corporation is changed to Arundel Fire-Rescue. The Corporation deeds back to the Town the land originally deeded to the Dept by the Durrell heirs. Bill Hallczuk, our longest serving member with 37 years of service, opens the new station in October of 1998 with a ribbon cutting ceremony. Jim Mackell is elected as Chief. During 1998 244 calls for assistance were answered. 1999 was a busy year for Arundel Fire-Rescue. During 1999 we responded to 232 calls for assistance. There were 105 medical calls, 56 accidents and 71 other fire calls. The members of Arundel Fire-Rescue and the members of the Arundel Auxiliary held a fund raising drive for a cardiac monitor/defibrillator and raised over $14,000. June 12 2000 The purchase of a new fire engine for $180,000. was authorized. Engine 303 was placed in service in May 2001. This engine is located at Central Station. The engine formerly known as Engine 303, purchased in 1968, was turned over to the Highway Dept. During 2000 228 calls for assistance were answered. There were 113 medical calls, 26 accidents and 89 other fire calls. During 2001, 299 calls for assistance were answered. Jim Mackell retired as Chief and Norm Boissonneault is elected. Arundel participates in a grant program sponsored by the Cole Family Foundation and received a Thermal Imager. Specifications are prepared for a new Ambulance. May 15, 1959 Original members Wendall Andrews Victor Bryant John Cowgill Carle Danis Ralph Danis Walter Garnet Lyman Harris Leo LeFebvre George Merrill Sr. George Merrill Jr. Stanley Merrill Richard Talbot |
 |