Firefighters Thanked For Efforts by Twp. Officials

After spending days, nights and weekends cloaked in their gear battling life-threatening blazes, Washington Township’s firefighters were thanked by the governing body this week.

Close to a dozen volunteer firefighters came out to Monday night’s regular meeting and were thanked for their hard work by Mayor Ken Short and the committee for their heroic works, according to town administrator Andrew Coppola. 

This came just two days after nearly 100 firefighters from around the region battled a blaze at 7 Shenandoah Court as a snow storm dropped several inches of precipitation on the area.

"It's good to be recognized," said Fairmount Fire Chief Pat Avello. "It's a lot of hard work by a lot of great people who care."

In the weeks prior, the Washington Township Fire Department has been dispatched to its own town, and serving as mutual aid to Chester during a four-alarm blaze on Rt. 24 and numerous calls in neighboring Tewksbury, which is served by Fairmount Fire Company.

In addition to the gratitude, the idea of the fire departments being issued tablet computers to use while on scene was discussed and could see room in next year’s budget, Coppola said.