The weekend of April 18 and 19 turned out to be another few days of multiple responses to intense brush fires, in addition to the usual responses for motor vehicles accidents and medical assists. It began Saturday at 1456 hours with a response to an MVA in Washington Twp - car vs motorcycle, where personnel assist in patient care. At 1842, Eastern Berks, Seisholtsville Fire and Bally Ambulance were dispatched to the report of a brush fire in District Twp. Fire personnel quickly arrived on scene to a wind driven fire racing across a knoll under power lines and threatening to extend into woods. While some slow moving brush fires can be fought with fire rakes, fire brooms, and back packs filled with water, this one was so intense, it required heavy fire lines dragged off trucks uphill through rocks and brush to attack the head of the fire. All three Eastern Berks stations and the one in Seisholtsville responded with all apparatus, but additional water and manpower was needed and requested from Hereford, Topton, and Boyertown Ambulance before we gained the upper hand. It started up again on Sunday at 1331 hours with another fire in a wooded area of Washington Twp. Crews from Eastern Berks and Boyertown Area Fire and Rescue worked for some time, before finally containing that one. This involved much work with chain saws in undergrowth and fallen timber. We had just returned to stations, when at 1540, we were alerted for a possible brush fire, again in Washington Twp. Then following that we were sent back to the the first one of the day as an unseen timber rekindled the woods. This one was quickly knocked down before it spread. It just shows how difficult these fires are to extinguish. Then on Monday we were sent for a medical assist involving an infant in District Twp and another unknown fire in Bally Borough. Its been a long and difficult April.
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