Tuesday, April 19, 2016

22 Days That Shook Douglass (Mont.) Township

Photo by Evan Brandt
Some, but not all, of the first responders who were recognized Monday night before the Douglass (Mont.) Supervisors meeting  by State Rep. Marcy Toepel and township officials.


Did you ever have one of those days?

Those weeks?

Those months?

Wouldn't it be nice if someone recognized how hard you had been working and presented you with an official indication of that recognition?

Well Monday night, that's exactly what happened for first responders who faced a heck of a 22-day period during which they dealt with four major fires; three major accidents, including a vehicle hanging on a wire eight feet off the ground;  and two rescues.

It all started on March 6 with a garage fire where live ammunition kept going off while firefighters were trying to battle the blaze and came to a close on April 3 with a fire on a windy day at the Berks-Mont Camping Center.

"Folks don't understand how important it is to have volunteers and how integral to the community you guys are," said Supervisors Chairman Anthony Kuklinski. "Without volunteers, Douglass Township could not exist."

Toepel acknowledged that the citations she was handing out were "really just a piece of paper, but they represent a thank you from the House of Representatives and all the community members."

She added, "the term hero is used far too loosely, but today, you are heroes. The men and women in this room who go out every day to do fire and rescue calls; so behind this piece of paper is the everlasting gratitude to you for what you do every day, risking your life to save other lives and property."

Also thankful was Rick Smith, chief of Gilbertsville Fire & Rescue who gave particular thanks for the cooperation enjoyed among the neighboring departments and services.

"When the chips are down, we know who to call and the job gets done," said Smith.

Without further ado, here are the Tweets from the regular meeting which followed and lasted only 50 minutes.

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