The following is a Journal News article:
A continuing dispute over fighting fires in this small Hasidic village once again boiled to the surface when firefighters from Hillcrest yesterday responded to a blaze at the grand rabbi’s home and found that a group of unsanctioned local volunteers with a makeshift firetruck had already begun dousing the flames.
Hillcrest Fire Chief Kim Weppler said he was concerned that the volunteers, who are part of New Square Emergency Services, may injure themselves or others because they have tried to battle blazes without proper training or equipment.
“This could have been a deadly situation. One of their members or someone from the community could’ve gotten hurt, and it delayed us getting in there,” Weppler said.
But village officials say their relationship with Hillcrest and Rockland County fire administrators has been friendly, and their volunteers were only trying to help.
“As of now our intentions are not to fight house fires,” Deputy Mayor Israel Spitzer said. “We will sit down (with Rockland fire officials) and make sure we come to an agreement and get all the necessary training in order to qualify.”
Spitzer said talks of arranging a meeting between village leaders and Rockland fire administrators had been in the works long before yesterday’s fire.
“We are definitely eager and looking forward to making sure we are working together, and we are both working for the safety of the community,” he said.
The Moleston Fire District, which oversees the Hillcrest department, took issue with New Square some two years ago because of building and safety violations there. The district threatened to stop providing emergency services to the village unless a meeting was held to discuss improving communications and setting time frames for building inspections and safety improvements.
A little more than a year ago, Weppler said, he began noticing a makeshift firetruck the size of an ambulance with a 200-gallon water tank turning up at fires across New Square.
Often, he said, volunteers would use it to fight flames without contacting the Hillcrest department. State law mandates that they report all fires to the chief of the fire district, in this case, Weppler.
“It’s absolutely illegal,” he said yesterday. “They are untrained personnel civilians participating in firefighting activities.”
The village has set up its own emergency response system, said Gordon Wren, Rockland’s fire coordinator. Rather than dialing 911, residents call a different number unique to New Square.
“Today is one of the first times they’ve had something potentially serious, but we don’t know for sure because they don’t tell us,” he said yesterday.
Wren said he worries about the volunteers because they don’t have equipment designed to protect them from smoke.
“I give these guys credit for being so courageous, but I don’t think they understand the danger of what they’re doing,” he said.
Yesterday’s fire at 10 Jefferson Ave. consumed a portion of the roof above a library.
As Hillcrest firefighters arrived, New Square volunteers were reeling in two hoses they had used to drench the flames, Weppler said.
No one was injured.
Aron Kaff, the village’s public safety coordinator, said volunteers had grabbed fire extinguishers from a nearby elementary school to defeat the fire.
“They are here to help anybody in the community,” he said. “They don’t take it upon themselves to go after house fires.”
Both sides expect to reach an agreement on policies and procedures once a meeting is established.
“There’s been some discussion on this, but obviously much more needs to be done,” Wren said. “The key here is to get all the appropriate parties together and come up with solutions.”
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17 Responses
why cant we just let the goyim take care of these things we should sit and learn ( make fires) not put them out
I doubt it is illegal for a group of private citizens to put out a fire – though it is probably very dangerous and unwise to do so. They should ask about becoming volunteer firemen.
As usual, typically trying to outdo the law
My opinion is that they have illegal construction that the town fire dept will find when they fight fires and then they’ll inspect and condemn what they find. These incidents in New Square and KJ are causing a great amount of chillul Hashem and just make the anti-‘religious’ more hateful. It also impacts on all Jews wherever we are. Dina d’malchusa dina,derech eretz,respect for authority are all required of Torah-following Jews. Dressing up does not make one frum.On the contrary,it announces the fact that “we are Orthodox Jews and we do what we want!”
To me it seems that all parties are calm & collected & willing to cooperate. Why the word “heat” in the headline?
#2, it certainly is illegal to use an invented “firetruck” to put out fires. What happens if chas v’shalom the “firetruck” runs a stop sign and hits another car? These people have no training in this!
Why isn’t anybody being “Dan l’kaf z’chus” these people. Is this how we would want ourselves to be judged for what we do? Is there no difference between Yidden and Goyim? Everybody jumps on the bandwagon of loshon horah and rechilus? Please, Yidden, THINK FOR A MINUTE BEFORE YOU JUDGE SOMEONE ELSE, BECAUSE YOU MIGHT BE PASSING JUDGMENT ON YOURSELVES AS WELL.
#4: Please post such anti-semitic comments on the times-herald site. It is very common there.
#’s 3 and 4: please spare us your drivel if you want to post the Preserve Ramapough (Bash the Yidden) party line, do it in their media, not here
It is amazing how our youth thinks , talks and writes just like the secular world out there . Why can’t you have a little bit of Limud Zchus towards other Yidden and not always jump and blame them .
I believe that kiryas yoel does have their own chasidishe fire menchin, i cant imagine that after a course or two, they cant legalize this
every rural area has volunteer firemen
Funny that this happens shortly after the story about the fire code violations at the Skver summer camp.
Why can’t they get trained like the Monroe fire department? They have a professional trained fire dept.
Or Just like hatzholo is trained fire should be trained as well.
Do any of these wise chronic bashers live in a rural area served by Volunteer FDs?
Do they have any idea how long it takes for the firemen to respond to a call rush to the firehouse
??miles away, and then to the scene. You watch your beighbor’s house go up in flames r”l
Do you know why the “black hat” “firemen” cannot have “legal” status. To be a FD you must repond to neighboring FD’s call for help, whihc is a problem on Shabbos & Yom Tov.
13 KJ’s FD is only “quasi” recognised & limited
I am amazed at all those bashing without the facts at hand.
The Fire Truck is state approved and funded. Its purpose is for small fires, and immediate intervention before larger apparatus arrives. It was properly used in the incident at hand.
Those using it were trained by a private company, and not through the Rockland academy. This is not a bunch of wanabees with hoses. They know their limits, and know what they are capable of handling.
The Public FD was called and notified, and that’s how they arrived. It happens to be that the fire was already out before they arrived.
This is typical bashing of everything chasidish. I am shocked when reading these comments, and sometimes I need to double check that Im on YWN and not on Recordonline.com
#15 KJ does have a legitimate fire dept… go to FDNYTRUCKS.com and their equipment can be seen. Please correct me if I am wrong but they are under legal and moral obligation to render assistance on Shabbos or Yom Tov if called on by another fire department needing help. As for the do it yourself guys written about here…they have to be kidding … fighting fires takes real equipment and serious knowledge of what fire can do and how to attack a fire. There is actually a science involved in fire fighting that takes much time and training to learn.
Editors Note: Their trucks can be seen at the following link http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=39407
VIDEO: http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/video_viewer.php?player=g&clip=-4473266416637147834&hl=en