East Hampton, CT Volunteer Fire Dept

05/13/2025

The East Hampton Volunteer Fire Department will conduct its annual pressure testing of all fire hose on Wednesday, May 21st (weather permitting). A mandatory certification requirement, this testing will be conducted in the area of the Fire Department’s Pump House at the western end of Walnut Avenue.

As a result, Walnut Avenue will be closed to through traffic between Main Street and Watrous Street between the hours of 8:00am and 6:00pm. Residents are advised to utilize alternate routes.

The EHVFD apologies for any inconvenience this one-day road closure may cause to residents and business owners in the area, and firefighters sincerely appreciate the continued support and consideration afforded the Department by those they serve.

04/28/2025

While Saturday's rainfall may have dampened down our weekend plans for outdoor activities, apparently it didn't do much to dampen down our lawns, fields or forests, as today's fire danger report from the DEEP indicates we are right back into the HIGH range. And, with the weather forecast for the front and middle part of the week calling for bright sunshine and low humidity continuing, we can expect that the fire danger will most likely remain HIGH (or higher) perhaps until Friday.

As a result, outside burning is prohibited once again and previously issued burn permits for this period of time are no longer valid.
Please be careful with anything that could potentially ignite an outside fire.

The members of the East Hampton Volunteer Fire Department appreciate your diligence and consideration in helping to keep our town safe from wildland fires.

04/18/2025

The Forest Fire Danger Level for Friday, April 18, 2025 is HIGH
and please remember that any previously issued burn permits are null and void when the danger is either High or Extreme.
Let's be careful out there ! ! !

04/10/2025

Guess what time of the year it is!!

We are still here and sponsoring our annual Easter Plant Sale!!

03/17/2025

As a follow-up to the earlier post regarding the early spring weather conditions that lead to increased risks of wildfires, we all know that "stuff" happens and, at some point, somebody's woods or fields are most likely going to find a way to catch themselves on fire.

In preparing for that inevitability, members of the East Hampton Volunteer Fire Department spent several hours of quality time in the woods off of Wopowog Road yesterday going through refresher training on the specialized apparatus, tools and equipment the department deploys to extinguish wildland fires.

Among other things, your volunteer firefighters trained on off-road UTV operation, the use of light-weight portable pumps that can be used to draw water from shallow streams or ponds far from the nearest access road, a US Army surplus "deuce-and-a-half" (resurrected and lovingly re-purposed into Forestry Tanker 2-12) and, of course, the inescapable arsenal of rakes, shovels, chainsaws, axes, entrenching tools and 40-pound backpack water tanks that need to be carried on foot over the hill and through the woods to put the fire out before it reaches grandma's house.

We're ready ! ! !

02/15/2025

East Hampton fire crews are on scene in the town of Lyme this afternoon, providing fire protection and other emergency services coverage for that community as firefighters from Lyme, East Haddam, Salem and other area departments battle a structure fire on Selden Road.
"Station Coverage' is a key component of mutual aid agreements among neighboring communities, as fire departments work collectively with their surrounding counterparts to not only address the immediate incident at hand but also to protect the safety and interests of the other residents of that town in the event of another emergency situation.
Mutual aid agreements are carefully structured so that fire departments providing that aid do not strip their own towns of emergency response resources.

01/27/2025

This morning (Sunday) members of the Junior Firefighter Division of the East Hampton Volunteer Fire Department were invited to tour the department's Emergency Communications Center in Glastonbury to see first hand how the 9-1-1 emergency system operates and to learn about the process and protocols that dispatchers follow when assigning resources to aid someone in need. The Glastonbury center handles all Police, Fire and EMS emergency and non-emergency calls for the towns of Glastonbury and East Hampton.

Hosted by Communications Supervisor Gabriel Buenrostro and Dispatcher Celia Basso (daughter of the late John Basso, a long-serving veteran East Hampton firefighter), the Junior Division members learned about the resources the dispatchers utilize when verifying the incident's location, analyzing the nature of the incident and gathering information from a caller who, more often than not, may be under extreme duress.

The Junior Firefighters also learned about CAD (Computer- Aided Dispatch) which helps the dispatchers interface with other agencies and dispatch centers, EMD (Emergency Medical Dispatch) which provides callers with step-by-step instructions on how to render immediate medical assistance prior to the arrival of emergency services and were able to see how the dispatchers on duty work together on complex calls to ensure the best possible outcome.

All in all, the Junior Firefighters of the EHVFD had a great experience and we thank Gabe and Celia for their attention and considersation.

01/15/2025

This morning, members of the East Hampton Volunteer Fire Department were summoned to the Connecticut Draft Horse Rescue facility on Chestnut Hill Road to assist the staff with lifting a two-thousand pound horse back onto it's feet. Upon arrival, the staff had already secured the horse with straps but there was no equipment available to lift this magnificant animal into an upright position. One of the EHVFD firefighters returned to his home, drive his tractor back to the scene and "Spencer" was subsequently "back on all fours" a short time later. All's well that ends well ! The Connecticut Draft Horse Rescue organization does incredible work in rehabilitating some of the largest and most gentle members of the equine family who, for any number of reasons, have been neglected, abused, abandoned, injured or otherwise placed at risk. The Draft Horse Rescue group is a 100% VOLUNTEER organization that provides medical care and other rehabilitative services to these "Gentle Giants", nuturing them back to health and finding them permanent homes where they will be properly taken care of for the rest of their lives. While sending best wishes to "Spencer" for a full and rapid recovery, members of the EHVFD salute the caring volunteers of the Connectict Draft Horse Rescue organization and are proud to have them within our community.

12/19/2024

(12/19/2024)

Tonight’s the final night of the Santa Runs!!! We can’t wait to see you all later.

The Santa Run begins at 05:00PM TONIGHT!!!

Tonight’s link for Santa’s GPS Tracker:

https://maps.app.goo.gl/S6KdYPaSj1x4HzjU6

***As a disclaimer, we cannot guarantee accuracy of the GPS tracker in terms of location in real-time, sometimes being delayed by a few minutes. In some events the tracker may fail and not work as intended, please rely on your ears for our airhorns, sirens, and Christmas music***

Reminder of tonight’s route
December 19th:
Main Street (between Barton Hill and 66), North Main, Christopher, West Dr., Bellwood Court, Lake Drive, Lakewood, Candlewood, Raymond, Pococtopaug Dr, Auburn Knoll, Island View, Blue Heron, Eastham Bridge, Seven Hills Crossing.

IMPORTANT NOTE: FOR SAFETY REASONS, SANTA WILL NOT BE ABLE TO STOP AND GREET PEOPLE ALONG THE STATE-CONTROLLED ROADS IN TOWN. IF YOU LIVE ALONG ROUTES 16, 66 OR 196, PLEASE CONSULT THE SCHEDULE ARRANGE TO MEET SANTA AT A CONVENIENT NEARBY LOCATION.

Please note also that inclement weather or emergency calls could potentially result in curtailment or cancellation of a particular evening’s activities and cannot be rescheduled. Please look ahead for weather and anticipate possibly stopping in a safe location along another route.

Any changes or updates to the established schedule will be posted on the EHVFD page as soon as practicable

Thank you and stay warm!

12/19/2024

As many of us wake up this morning a few days before Christmas approaches, please remember to cherish those moments a little bit closer with your family, friends and loved ones.
We send our deepest of condolences to the Portland community next door for their loss. Last night, a member of the Portland Fire Department and their Board of Selectman was struck by a vehicle on Main Street just prior to a Board of Selectman meeting.