Barn Fire Devestates the Webbs Mills Farm Community

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:25:00 +0000

A dairy barn on Dutch Hill Road in Pine City filled with more than 80 cattle went up in flames Tuesday night. As the fire started to spread, farmers saved the cattle by rushing them out of the structure, with no injuries reported.

Fire crews arrived to Watts Farm in Pine City around 5:00pm Tuesday evening. Fire officials haven't conclusively determined what started the fire, but say it was probably caused by gas-powered farm equipment being used when the fire began.

The blaze was contained to the dairy barn and despite the high winds, the flames did not spread to the adjacent home or garage.

"I would say it's an excellent effort on behalf of all the responsers. They kept the main fire contained to the source, and protected all the exposures so house and garage still stands,” says Webb Mills Fire Chief Jason Halm.

Fire departments from Chemung and Steuben counties, as well as Bradford and Tioga counties in Pennsylvania responded to the rural location on Dutch Hill Road.

W.M.F.D Gets a Rush of Alarms

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 13:55:00 +0000

With the first two weeks of the New Year being calm and our trucks not turning a wheel, W.M.F.D became one of the last to recieve their first call of the year. everything changed though on 1/16/12 when WMFD recieved a call for a roll over MVA with no injuries. Crews responded primarily doing traffic control since the patient was hurt. After crews returned to quarters to clean apparatus and conduct the company's monthly meeting. The next day as night fell upon Webbs Mills Crews were alerted to a AFA but were held up at the station since the wind only had pushed smoke from the chimney back into the house. On 1/18/12 Southport Vol. Fire Dept. was alerted to a Structure Fire on State Route 14. Chief 1401 called on the air and requested more info when dispatch advised they were recieving more calls he requested tankers from Pine City, Wellsburg, and Webbs Mills. Onca dispatched 1861 responded to the scene as more volunteers stood-by at Station 18-1. As the fire went on W.M.F.D was then requested for more manpower to the scene. Once the fire was under control 1861 was able to leave and responded to stand-by at Pine City Station.Once all units cleared from Route 14 Webbs Mills was dispatched to a MVA on State Route 328. 1881, 1821, 1871 all responded and handled the incident and were out for about an hour and 328 was re-opened.

As we were already off to a busy start the next day Big Flats Vol. Fire Dept. was dispatched to a structure fire on Steege Hill Rd. As more details came in about the fire it was learned that the fire originated in the area of the Chimney but had gotten into the walls. Golden Glow and South Corning both responded and it was later recognized that the fire was in Golden Glow's district. After Golden Glow arrived on scene first and established command Chief 902 requested SCBA personal from Webbs Mills 1821 responded with 4 SCBA personal and moments after Chief 1801 and Brush 1872 responded aith 6 more SCBA personal. Units reponded in harsh wintery conditions and remained on scene for about two hours. The fire was contained to the origin of the fire and due to the swift response of Golden Glow, Big Flats, and South Corning the structure was salvagable. At all incidents there was a great amount of effort put forth by all firefighters and all departments.

Webbs Mills Aids Tioga County, NY During Flooding

Sat, 15 Oct 2011 18:40:00 +0000

On 9/9/11 Webbs Mills dodged major flooding but other communities weren't as lucky. The same night members of WMFD were responding to flooding in the Penn. Ave/ Rt. 328 area, neighboring communities such as Wellsburg and the counties of Broome and Tioga County, NY and Bradford, PA were experiencing major flooding from almost all the rivers and creeks in thier counties. After WMFD cleared from the flooding in thier district they began to assemble crews and supplies to aid fellow communities. It began Friday night when 10 firefighters headed to Wellsburg to aid in the beginning cleaning efforts in cleaning thier fire station out which was under 4 feet of water. Crews were able to clean the bays so the apparatus could be safe for the night as the town was now flooded with utility workers and people who were allowed access to thier homes again.

Saturday the call came in for units from Chemung County to be sent to Tioga County, NY for a 72 hour deployment. Elmira Hieghts with 2, Southport with 2, and Webbs Mills with 4 quickly assembled and headed off to Owego where the incident command was located. Upon arrival units were met with National Guard and numerous other companies departing to different parts of the county. Tioga County, NY loaded our units up with water and MREs and quickly deployed us to Nichols, NY. Units were lead on detours to the town of Nichols which was in dismay since the water was still rising in the town. All Chemung County units were designated as SEFU but eneded up doing both SEFU and Stand-by for Nichols FD. Units worked in 12 hour shifts with the Hieghts and Southport covering 7 A.M.- 7 P.M. and Webbs Mills covering 7P.M.- 7A.M.

Saturday night when units arrived in Nichols it was recognized that we were the first SEFU units that thier area had seen. Alden Fire Dept. was also deployed in Nichols acting as a swift water rescue team for 72 hours. Not much action was seen the first night but units helped National Guardsmen unload pallets of water and MREs to Nichols FD which acted as the local kitchen where citizens were being transported fromlocal shelters to there for food and hospitality.

9/11/11 and 9/12/11 all units were busy in the town responding to HAZMATS, Gas Odors, and pumping basements for numerous citizens. on 9/12/11 units were met with relief crews from Brewster who would continue to do the same through thier 72 hour deployment as our units did. The Flood was very destructive, destroying homes and bridges leaving many homeless and others in disbelief. Units ended thier 72 hour deployment on Saturday by returning to Owego, NY to check out of the command post.

Webbs Mills Comes Close to Flooding

Fri, 09 Sep 2011 21:45:00 +0000

Throughout the day Wednesday 9/7/11 remnants of Tropical Storm Lee moved through NewYork and Pennsylvania. At the same time storms formed in Virginia and eventually train tracked, which is storms form a line and move in the same area one after another, into the area Lee had left. Over the course of the day Seeley Creek rose slowly as volunteers staffed station 1 in case of any emergency. Towards the evening the rain seemed to have moved out of the area as areas east of us started to flood and get into a problem area. Night fell upon Webbs Mills and not until early morning Thursday did a problem arise. At 0200 hrs Webbs Mills Fire Officials put into affect the pre-plan that was established Tuesday night at a special meeting. With heavy rains starting up again and Seeley Creek coming about a foot from flooding into Station 1 crews were dispathched for manpower to the station. With a strong response Webbs Mills Vol. Fire Dept. was able to act quickly and move all apparatus and necessary equipment to the Webbs Mills United Methodist Church, which was on higher ground, and established a command post with the possibility of the flooding becoming a major event.

Once established at the church volunteers were given assignments to apparatus and sent to monitor water rising at different locations. With the situation worsening, some crews evacuated parts of Pennsylvania Ave. and State Route 328 due to the danger of these residences and bussinesses flooding. Everyone finally caught a break when the rain ceased and debris stuck under the bridge on Rt. 328 cleared and water began to flow smoothly again. By 0400 hrs. The water levels of the creek began to decrease dramaticly. Minor flooding was an issue on arts of Pennsylvania Ave. and Bird Creek Rd. but by 0700 hrs. the command post moved back to the Webbs Mills Firehouse. Crews stood by throughout the day Thursday and helped a few neighbors with water problems that were threatening utilities.

WMFD Keeps Busy in July and August 2011

Thu, 01 Sep 2011 12:50:00 +0000

As the hot days of summer rolled into New York, volunteers from WMFD kept themselves busy not with calls but multiple events in the area. In July WMFD sent a team to play at Knoxville Waterball and came home with 1st Place the third year in a row. Two days later WMFD shined up Brush 1872 and ATV 1874 and represented our area in Knoxville's parade and came back with furthest distance traveled. The next weekend Numerous Volunteers helped to raise money at a pre-sold Chicken BBQ and manned the Food Booth at the Fairgrounds for a horse show. After hours of work WMFD brought in some extra money to put towards some new gear.

July had ended and August began with the Chemung County Fair where WMFD provided parking eaach night from 4:30 P.M. to 7:00 P.M. Luckily there were a good amount of dedicated members that assisted. Saturday of the same week WMFD sent a couple of crews to Chapel Park for a community days event. Although it did rain there was still a good turn-out and many of the children enjoyed seeing our fire apparatus. The next day, Sunday, it was off to Fairshake in Pine City, NY for the annual Roger Sterling Memorial Ride. Many members came out and sold breakfast and lunch which consisted of a Chicken BBQ. WMFD worked with members of the Webbs Mills United Methodist Church and raised money for the Food Pantry in Pine City.

Things calmed down for a couple of weeks and as they did crews found other things to do around the station. For about a week members began to clean the outside of the station. First by getting rid of all the spiders then scrubbing the station with a house wash. The members finished cleaning on a drill night and the station now looks sharp. The same weekend cleaning began at the station Brush 1872 and REHAB 1873 represented Webbs Mills in Wellsburg's Community Days Parade. As the month drew to an end Webbs Mills felt the earthquake from Mineral, VA and prepared for the worse scenarios with Hurricane Irene. Thank You to all of the members who helped to make this summer a success and to everyones countless hours that have helped out tremendously.

WMFD Honors Memorial Day

Tue, 31 May 2011 13:52:00 +0000

Webbs Mills Vol. Fire Dept. honored Memorial Day by representing our community in both the Elmira and Millerton Parades. Engine 1831 and Brush 1872 went to the Elmira parade with multiple members that marched the 1.5 mile parade route. After the Elmira parade was over units proceeded back to the station where other members waited to attend the Millerton Parade. Arriving just in time for the parade to start all of our apparatus was showcased in the parade for having the best appearing Fire Dept. in 2010. We thank the organizers of the Millerton parade for another excellent parade and a special thanks to all of the exhausted WMFD firefighters that attended the parade after an extremely busy weekend cleaning up after the Tornado.

WMFD Crews Finish Tornado Clean Up

Mon, 30 May 2011 16:43:00 +0000

Finally the warm weather has come to Webbs Mills but so has the Severe Weather. At Around 1645 hrs on May 26, 2011 a severe thunderstorm came through and brought heavy rain, strong winds, and even golf ball size hail. For many this was an unusual type of event for the area. The storm came quickly and was over in fifteen minutes but it did blow trees over into some peoples property and hail did cause some minor damage to vehicles and houses. At 1700 hrs WMFD was dispatched to Bird Creek Rd. for a woods fire started by powerlines. Crews operated on that incident for a few hours while they waited for NYSEG whom was overflowing with calls at the time. At about 1930 hrs crews finally cleared and headed back to the station. Some left for dinner others for classes for the Fire Dept. and some people stayed at the Firehouse ready for the next emergency.

Another storm developed and struck with heavier damage than the one before. This time the storm developed a funnel cloud which swept from Clark Hollow Rd. all the way to the neighborhood in Pine Hills. The first dispatch came in at around 2030 hrs when the storm was at its strongest. This dispatch was for two calls and at the same time Chief 1801 advised that there was a tornado touchdown on Clark Hollow near Dutch Hill Rd. Brush 1872 and Chiefs 1801 and 1803 called on responding to the incidents. When they were enroute another set of tones dropped for more calls in our district. Finally it came to the point where all of our units were operating at different incidents and calls were written onto a list due to the amounts. Mutual Aid was called from Pine City and Daggett but both were unable to respond because they were tied up with multiple incidents in their districts. Crews operated until 0200 hrs in the morning when all units reported back to the station to regroup. All 50 members were sent home to rest up until the morning when at 0800 hrs crews met back at the station.

All through Friday members worked on removing trees from houses and vehicles because of the storm. Crews worked well with NYSEG as power was restored to all of the area by 0600 hrs Saturday morning. All day Friday WMFD was kept busy with removing trees from the community. On Sunday 5/29/11 members met once again to tackle the destruction left by the storm and was provided breakfast and lunch thanks to the Rufus Tanner House. At around 1400 hrs. all clean up was completed and roads were returned to their normal state of operation. A special thanks to All the members that spent countless hours halping their neighbors, Chemung County Sheriffs Dept., NYS DEC, NYSEG, Chemung County Highway Dept., Southport Town Highway Dept., and the Rufus Tanner House for providing excellent food for our firefighters.

Severe Storm Possibly a Tornado Hits Webbs Mills

Sat, 28 May 2011 17:00:00 +0000

PINE CITY — By the strangest of coincidences, Maureen Brown was watching "The Big Bang Theory" on her television Thursday night when a severe thunderstorm darkened the sky and blew down nearby trees that, with a snap, crackle and pop, pulled the electric wires from the front side of her Pine City home.

The 1731 Pennsylvania Ave. home escaped any structural damage.

But with no electricity to run the well pump, there was no running water. There were no working appliances and access to the garage was blocked by limbs that had fallen from a large tree.

"The first things I noticed was that it got dark and the wind," Brown said as she recalled the events that took place immediately before her home and others nearby were buffeted by tornado-like winds, blinding rain and golf-ball sized hailstones around 8:30 p.m. Thursday.

"The trees were bending and the wind was making a lot of noise," she said.

"When the tree came down and took out the power, we heard a 'pop' and it took out our compressors. Every electrical appliance that we had on, we lost."

The stories told by the Browns and other homeowners living along Pennsylvania Avenue, where it crosses Seeley Creek from Pine City and travels into Webbs Mills, were all similar.

Between 8 and 8:30 p.m. Thursday, a fierce storm — described by many as a tornado — blew in from the south.

Doors were blown off barns. Trees of all sizes were ripped out of the ground or snapped in half. Yard ornaments and portable barbecue grills were blown away.

Katie Smith, who lives near the southernmost intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue and state Route 328, watched the wind blow "sheets of tree branches" up the road.

Her husband moved the family camper to a clear spot away from the trees beside their house at 1763 Pennsylvania Ave.

But when he climbed on the camper's roof to check for damage, he was blown off by the gusting wind and broke his arm in the fall.

Joshua Davis of 1812 Pennsylvania Ave. was working at Hilliard Corp. when a tree, uprooted by the forceful winds, fell onto the home he moved into a short eight months ago.

"My fiancée was giving my daughter a bath," Davis said.

"They heard the hail hitting and then they heard a big crash."

In the case of Gene and Donna White, the large tree on the southern side of their home at 1427 Pennsylvania Ave. was sent crashing through the roof and into what was once one of their children's bedrooms.

"We were sitting on the porch talking with my brother and sister-in-law," Gene White said.

"We got a little rain and suddenly, we heard it coming and it sounded like a freight train. The wind started whipping and tipped over stuff and then something hit the house."

For the Whites, who said the tree that crashed into their house was a giant when they moved in 35 years ago, there was a silver lining behind their ordeal.

About 20 friends, neighbors and strangers who drove by the damaged home Friday morning stopped and helped with the clean-up efforts.

"We didn't have to call anybody," said Donna White. "They just stopped and I had the coffee on for them."

The Whites hired Renko's Tree Service to remove the tree from their two-story house.

But across Seeley Creek in Webbs Mills, crews from the hamlet's volunteer fire department were handling the task for homeowners.

Jason Halm, chief of the fire department, was one of several in the area who saw a funnel cloud descend from the sky Thursday evening and touch the ground.

The path it took was easily defined by blown down and twisted trees.

"It cut a huge swath that followed Seeley Creek to the highway, jumped across the highway and followed Old Pennsylvania Avenue and up Bird Creek Road," Halm said.

After the storm blew through, Halm dispatched 42 volunteers from his department who, along with members from the New York State Police, Chemung County Sheriff's Office and the state Department of Environmental Conservation worked through the night clearing downed trees from the roadways.

At 8 a.m. Friday, Halm's firefighters went back out — this time to cut and removed trees that had fallen on houses, garages and yards.

"We have calls from 41 houses and we're trying to help NYSEG," Halm said.

"If we clear out the trees, they can get the wires back up. We'll probably be working through Sunday, but we're trying to help as much as we can."

This Article is from the Star Gazette

More to come soon about our departments involvement in the storm.

2010 Firefighter I Graduation

Sat, 12 Feb 2011 21:21:00 +0000

On behalf of the Webbs Mills Vol. Fire Dept. we would like to welcome to the service seven newly trained firefighters. Katie Bachman, Brendan Bassler, Tabitha Bassler, Ken Baumgartner, Brian Ewanyk, Kyle Halm, and Charles Riker all have completed their Firefighter I training in the Spring and Fall classes of the year 2010. This year Webbs Mills had the largest amount of graduates from the area. These members are currently very active as their Probationary terms come to an end. We hope that these members continue to grow in their knowledge of the fire service and continue to service their community. The graduation took place at Thomas Edison High School where the graduates were awarded their certificates for the 91 hours of training they put in to earn it.

Millerton Lumber Yard Fire

Tue, 16 Nov 2010 22:54:00 +0000

At 0615 hrs on 11/16/10 Webbs Mills Crews were dispatched Mutual Aid to Millerton for a full response to a structure fire. Chief 1803 was the first to call out and arrive on scene from our department. 1861 responded with 2 and moments later 1831 responded with 5 pack to the scene. 1803 then notified responding units that the structure was fully involved. During response a large column of smoke was visible all the way from Station 1. Upon arrival heavy smoke and fire conditions were found from sides A, B, and C with partial roof collapse.1831 was assigned to side A for exterior attack as 1861 began water supply operations. Soon after 1821 arrived with a full crew and laid 5 in. from Daggett's engine to the rear of the lumber yard where a creek would supply some of the water for fire operations.

During the blaze multiple explosions occured due to oil barrels being stored inside the structure. Units from Webbs Mills, Daggett, Millerton, South Creek, and Pine City operated for nearly four hours when the fire was called under control. Our station was covered by Caton and Pine City was covered by Wellsburg while units operated at the scene. Webbs Mills responded with 1821, 1831, 1861, 1871, 1872, and our REHAB 1873. A total of 23 personal responded to the scene to assist our fellow mutual aid department and units cleared around 1100 hrs.