JULY 2011 - FEATURED DEPARTMENT

TANGIER VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT
STATION 21

   The Tangier Volunteer Fire Department was organized in 1964, with just eight (8) charter members. The town of Tangier is located within Accomack County, uniquely situated on an island in the beautiful Chesapeake Bay, twelve (12) miles west of Onancock. It is made up of many small islands divided by marshes and small tidal streams. Tangier has three ridges referred to as Main Ridge, Canton, and West Ridge, with Main Ridge being the largest of the three. Small bridges connect the ridges to each other. The Tangier Islands were visited by Captain John Smith in 1608 and have been continuously inhabited since the late 1680's. 

   Prior to organized fire protection, each family on Tangier had its own leather bucket, and when the alarm sounded, each family would quickly gather to form a bucket brigade from the nearest well. As aforementioned, the department was organized in 1964; the founding fathers were Jimmy Daley, Edward Parks, Grover Charnock and Bob Crockett. The first firehouse was a tin Quonset hut, which was located across the street from the present electric plant and housed the island's first motorized pieces of apparatus, two (2) Cushman scooters equipped with minimal firefighting equipment. We have included a picture of them in the slide show. 

    Just a few months after its inception, tragedy struck the island when two (2) people perished in a house fire. Due to this devastating event, over 70 people attended the next month's fire company business meeting. Members and residents alike were determined to increase their firefighting capabilities. Their efforts proved successful, and, in April 1965 the company received their first "official" fire engine. It was donated by the Melfa Volunteer Fire Company.

    The streets on Tangier are very narrow, and the homes are situated very close together, therefore, most of the residents travel by bicycle or golf carts. In fact, the fire department even operated a Cushman golf cart "Mini-Engine" for many years. It was featured in Natural Geographic magazine in 1973. Its predecessors were the original Cushman scooters.

    Since Tangier did not have an ambulance in the early years, patients were simply loaded into the bed of a pick-up, covered with blankets, and transported to the health center. The department obtained its first ambulance in the early 1980’s. Members now transport patients in the ambulance to the recently constructed David B. Nichols Health Center, properly named for Dr. Nichols, who visited Tangier weekly for over 31 years, until his death in December 2010. From the health center, if needed, patients are transported by boat to Edward W. McCready Hospital in Crisfield, Maryland or they are airlifted by helicopter to the appropriate medical facility. (Typically, Trooper 4 - Salisbury {Maryland State Police Aviation Division} transports patients to Peninsula Regional Medical Center, in Salisbury). For clarification, Tangier has had a health center, staffed by several on-call nurses for many years.

    Transportation off the island is limited to boat or plane. Boats regularly arrive and depart the harbor from neighboring Onancock, Crisfield, Maryland and Reedville, Virginia. The island receives their mail and numerous essential supplies from Crisfield daily aboard the mail boat "Courtney Thomas". By way of air, Tangier has a modern airfield, complete with a recently re-paved asphalt runway. Its airport is open from dawn to dusk.

    Due to its isolation, Tangier's fire and EMS personnel have quite a unique situation, as unlike the mainland fire and rescue stations of the Eastern Shore, Tangier does not have the advantage of having mutual-aid departments to call upon. In fact, you could say that they are on their own, especially during a fire incident. Fortunately, the island does have a municipal water system and fire hydrants are strategically placed throughout the island. Tangier's closest actual neighbors are located on a sister-island, Smith Island, Maryland - approximately 10 miles to the north.

    Presently, Tangier - Station 21 operates a modern fleet of four (4) apparatus, including an Ambulance, Engine (Pumper), Mini-pumper and Brush unit. The modern station, located on Main Ridge Road was built in 1983 and features two (2) engine bays. Other station amenities include a meeting room, engineer's room and various storage & office areas. During 2010, the dedicated volunteers of Station 21 responded to 3 fire incidents and 68 EMS incidents. 

    In closing, we would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Fire Chief Michael Parks, for his invaluable assistance in providing the information needed to compile this article. All of the photographs appearing in the slide show were provided courtesy of the Tangier Volunteer Fire Department. Also, take a minute to visit the official website of Tangier, it will be worth your while.

2011 Officers:
Administrative
President - Jamie Crockett
Vice-President - Larry Pruitt

Line Officers
Fire Chief - Michael Ryan Parks
Deputy Chief - Gary W. Pruitt
1st Assistant Chief - Chris Pruitt
2nd Assistant Chief - Gary Parks
Captain - Logan D. Crockett
Lieutenant - Mickey Daley
Engineer - Craig Bonniwell

Visit the Official website of Tangier Island

Fleet of Apparatus

 

AMBULANCE 21-2
2012 CHEVROLET G3500 / DEMERS





ENGINE 21-6
2008 INTERNATIONAL / SWAB





ENGINE 21-4
1992 FORD / PIERCE MINI-PUMPER






UNIT 21-5
1994 CHEVROLET S-10 PICKUP