City of Peekskill Fire Department

08/23/2026

08/21/2026

🚒Delivery Day🚒

This afternoon, we took delivery of a brand new, 2026 Seagrave Marauder pumper from Hudson Valley Fire Equipment, LLC! The new pumper, designated as Engine 132, replaces a 30 year old truck that has served the City well. The new engine is equipped with a 1500 gallon per minute pump, 500 gallon water tank, among a variety of firefighting tools.

Next to come for Engine 132 is a week of in-service training, for our members to familiarize with its operation; as well as being loaded with a full compliment of fire hose, before being placed in service (very soon) to protect the City.

08/15/2026

*Weekly Training*

This week, career members visited the Peekskill Middle School for a walk-through of the facility. Building walk-throughs allow us the opportunity to see building layouts, critical areas (electric & water shut offs, fire alarm panel, etc), and prepare a pre-plan of the property for emergency responses. In addition to the building tours, firefighters also check nearby fire hydrants, to document the flow capacities.

On duty groups have spent a good portion of the summer touring all of our city schools, to better familiarize ourselves with the building. A special thanks to Peekskill City School District for allowing us this opportunity during the busy “construction” season for schools.

This week also marked a training night for our volunteer firefighters. Volunteer members trained on our air/lifting bags, simulating a victim crushed by a vehicle. Firefighters practiced lifting the vehicle, while building cribbing stacks to stabilize the weight, in the event of a mechanical failure.

Another week of a wide range of training topics, ensuring we are as prepared as possible to keep our city safe!

08/06/2026

👨‍🚒 National Night Out 🍧

PFD members participated in Tuesday’s National Night Out at the Peekskill Riverfront Green. Members had a great time making snow cones and providing information about our department to the community!

One of our most important values is being involved in the great community that we serve!

08/02/2026

*Weekly Training*

This week, members reviewed lifting and stabilizing heavy objects. Using our complement of air bag equipment, members lifted vehicles off of the ground to simulate the rescue of a victim trapped under the weight of a heavy object. As the object was lifted, a stack of wood cribbing was built, intended to stabilize the load by capturing the lift progress in the event of an equipment failure.

Air bag operations are a very low frequency rescue operation, but being proficient on all of our equipment keeps us ready to response to any type of emergency.

08/01/2026

Today is a somber day in Peekskill Fire Department history.

On this date 108 years years ago, August 1st 1918, the City of Peekskill lost 7 Volunteer members of the Fire Department in the Line of Duty as a result of a collapse at the Fleishmann’s fire near Charles Point. To date, this is the deadliest fire in the history of our department.

We remember the lives of those lost, and are proud to continue of the tradition of service to our City in their honor.

In memory of:

Surgeon Dr. Charles R.F. Greene
Captain Clarence J. Lockwood
1st LT James H. Selleck
2nd LT Louis A. Barmore
Firefighter George A. Casseles
Firefighter John E. Torpy
Firefighter Walter Cole

The annual ceremony to honor and remember the fallen members, will be held this evening, at the Fleishmann’s memorial site at 8 John Walsh Boulevard, beginning at 5pm. All are welcome to attend.

07/31/2026

This week, our members visited the summer program at Oakside School. Students got to see some of our equipment up close, got a tour of the fire engine, and then got soaked by the fire hose (always a favorite)!

Thanks to the program and school district staff for the opportunity to visit!

07/27/2026

*Structure Fire*

Last evening, just after 6pm, the Peekskill Fire Department was dispatched to a reported structure fire in the area of Franklin Street and Ringgold Street. While enroute, crews were updated by Peekskill Police on scene that the fire was on the 500th block of Dyckman Street.

First arriving units reported a heavy smoke condition and transmitted a 10-75, bringing additional resources into the City.

The fire was extinguished within minutes of arrival. The cause of the fire was ruled accidental, determined to be caused by a malfunction of an E-Scooter charger. No injuries were reported and all units returned to service by 9pm.

Due to the involvement of a Lithium-ion battery powered device, a number of extra steps had to be taken to ensure the property was left in a safe condition. The E-Scooter was disassembled to remove the battery, and the battery was packed into a container designed for battery containment. The battery was then transported off-site to a hazardous materials recovery facility, by fire department personnel.

Another special thanks to all of our neighboring agencies that responded to assist both at the scene, and covering the city for additional alarms. We always appreciate the help!

As a reminder, when selecting charging devices for a Lithium-ion powered device, please ensure they are compatible with the battery they will be used to charge. All chargers should also be “UL listed,” to ensure they meet safety standards, reducing the likelihood of a failure.

07/18/2026

*Weekly Training*

A busy week of training for PFD firefighters this week!

Career members training topic consisted of pumping operations to standpipe equipped buildings. Standpipes are present in multi-story or very large buildings, eliminating the need for long hose stretches. Members practiced connecting to fire department connections (FDC) on the exterior of the building, and supplying the appropriate pressure to crews on the fire floor.

Volunteer members practiced low angle rope rescue operations. These evolutions included basic lowering and hauling systems, to rescue a victim from down a steep slope or embankment.

Both career and volunteer members also participated in “Hostile Event” drill in conjunction with Law Enforcement. Our members were deployed as a Rescue Task Force, at a simulated hostile event, with multiple victims of varying degrees of injuries.

These three very different topics highlight the wide range of emergencies that our members regularly train for, to ensure we are prepared to keep our City as safe as possible!

07/12/2026

On Wednesday, July 8th, we had a visit from US Congressman Mike Lawler. During the visit, the Congressman spent some time with the on-duty crew, and discussed issues concerning the New York State Fire Service, such as the retention and recruitment of volunteer firefighters, as well as long lead times and inflated pricing for new fire apparatus.

Congressman Lawler also inquired about the well-being of our members that responded to two recent fatal fires in Peekskill and Lake Mohegan. The Congressman spent about 30 minutes with us, before moving on with his busy day.