Donations coming in to replace Surf City Fire Co.’s broken siren

A Surf City resident who wishes to remain anonymous has donated $2,500 to help start a fund for the Surf City Volunteer Fire Co. and EMS to get its fire siren in working order again.

Photo by Ryan Morrill
The siren is essential for alerting firefighters
and other rescue personnel for emergencies.

The contribution came after Fire Chief Michael Wolfschmidt made a Facebook post about the siren’s unexpected demise. The post also prompted Ship Bottom resident Donna Elmowsky-Arminio to rally support from individuals, business owners and fire companies inside and outside of town. She has suggested holding fundraisers and raffles to raise the money as well as reaching out to other fire departments that may have a used siren to donate.

“I have reached out to my friends who are either chiefs, captains or volunteers in various fire departments in various states and asked them to please spread the word to see if there happens to be a fire department that is not using their fire siren or who could offer some kind of assistance,” said Elmowsky-Arminio. “I am a Ship Bottom resident, but thought I could offer some assistance by spreading the word for a very worthy cause.”

Wolfschmidt, who noted it would cost $15,000 to buy a new siren and an additional $7,000 for installation, said the fire department is “extremely grateful for the generous contributions and support.” The all-volunteer department runs solely on donations and never charges for its services.

“Donations to our company ensure we are properly equipped and prepared to handle any emergency that we are called upon,” he stated.

Although the fire company also uses electronic paging equipment and a Smartphone app to alert members of calls, the gear is not always reliable. The pager will not activate if there is a weak signal or bad battery or if the radio system goes down. The system, which is funded by each of the Island’s fire companies and EMS squads through the 18 Mile Emergency Services Association, has been inoperable several times during the last decade due to lightning strikes as well as during Superstorm Sandy, Wolfschmidt noted.

“We spend a lot of money every year to maintain our radios and pagers,” he said.

During a particular call several years ago, the pagers did not activate at all. A few members heard the siren, responded to the station and called the dispatcher, who notified them that a Surf City house was on fire.

“Fortunately our firefighters were able to save most of the home that night and keep it from spreading to other residences, all from hearing the fire siren,” Wolfschmidt said.

The siren has also been a big help for such members as the chief’s father, Scott, a local plumber who often has to take off his fire pager and phone when going into crawlspaces for work repairs.

“I cannot tell you how many countless times he has responded to fires by hearing just the fire siren while in a crawlspace over the past 20-plus years,” said the chief.

The Smartphone app, although very helpful, is only a backup to the siren and pagers. While the app has some good features, it also has “some serious flaws” that make it unreliable, Wolfschmidt said. A few weeks ago, a member showed up to the firehouse an hour after a call because his phone had just activated the message.

“He had no idea that the call was already well over. We cannot accept this as a reliable means of alerting our volunteers,” said Wolfschmidt. “I hope this information can help explain to our residents and visitors as to why we need the siren.”

Anyone interested in making a donation to the fire department may send a check to Surf City Volunteer Fire Company and EMS at 713 North Long Beach Blvd., Surf City, N.J. 08008, attention: fire siren fund.

— Kelley Anne Essinger

This article was published in The SandPaper.