Southwest Harbor Fire Department
Annual Report for the year of 2009

The Fire Department responded 81 times to calls for assistance during the year of 2009. These calls were logged as:
Structure Fires 13 Automobile/boats 3
Motor vehicle accidents 10 Rescue Calls 3
Emergency Medical calls 5 Vegetation Fires 3
Investigations 19 Hazardous conditions 7
Assist other agencies 7 Other Calls 11

While 2009 had the Fire Crew running on a slightly below average number of calls, the variety that we were called to kept things interesting all the same. Structure Fires and Motor vehicle accidents made the winter months go by quickly with the remainder of the year keeping us in practice with a wide variety of calls in every category.

The Southwest Harbor Fire Association were confronted with the pinch of the recent economy down turn processing almost twice the number of requests for assistance as they had for the year 2008. The Association wishes to thank all those that have come to their suppers and other fund raising activities, for without your generous support, they would have been unprepared to help those so desperately in need.

In June I once again had the privilege of watching two more of our members graduate from the State Fire Fighter academy. Lynne Brown and Sash Gowell reached the coveted National Ranking of Firefighter class 2, strengthening our abilities to serve our town with highly trained firefighters.

Santa Claus arrived in August with the Town of Mount Desert and the Mount Desert Fire Department passing on to the Fire Department its recently retired Ladder Truck. The fires on Main Street in Northeast Harbor were the closing arguments to the desperate need for ladder service in Southwest Harbor. The Veteran 1981 American LaFrance 75 foot Quint style truck gives us a head start on containing anything that may strike rather than having to wait up to a half hour for a mutual Aid ladder to arrive. I cannot express enough my gratitude to the Mount Desert Selectmen and Fire Department for their generosity and concern for adequate Fire Protection for our town."

On behalf of the Town of Southwest Harbor I wish to express to all the volunteer members of the Fire Department our sincerest thanks for all that you do for your town with no expectation of reward. Whether you are running into a burning building while others are running out, spending countless hours patching together our tired old trucks in hope they will run another year or just washing the floors and cleaning the toilets for another public meeting, what you provide can only be valued as priceless, you are the faces of the true Maine spirit. Our communities cannot replace what Volunteers do for them and still benefit from the love and caring that drives you to do what you do.

Respectfully Submitted
Samuel T. Chisholm
Chief
Southwest Harbor Fire Department

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