Pink Fire Engines? It must be October

HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. - Nov. 12, 2015 - PRLog -- Following on from last year where for the first time, the Hendersonville Fire department wrapped one of their fire engines to promote breast cancer awareness month, they decided to wrap two fire engines for this year.

“Our goal is to promote awareness and to generate financial support for cancer research. Wrapping the engines in pink for the month of October (designated as cancer awareness month) is a great way to do this” explained Joseph Vindigni, Interim Fire Chief.

“Cancer is a major issue today. Firefighters are not immune, due to the materials used today in vehicles and construction, that during a fire, release dangerous chemicals.  These have increased the potential of cancer for firefighters. The ability for us to promote awareness and to aid in cancer research through the pink fire engine wraps is one way that we’re able to do in supporting this.”

Their actions have inspired two other fire departments in Western North Carolina to also look to turning their fire engines pink for the month.

The Hendersonville Professional Firefighters Association (the local affiliate of the International Association of Firefighters) assisted with soliciting funds from local businesses for the pink wraps.  These funds as well as monies collected from the sales of pink t-shirts during the month of October will allow the Hendersonville Fire Department to donate over $1,000 to cancer research.

“Asheville Signarama wrapped our fire engines last year as well as this year.  They have done a great job even though problems were encountered early in the process.  Their customer service and support have been fantastic and they have been more than willing to resolve the situation quickly and efficiently.”

However the benefits to all go beyond cancer research and hard dollars.  The Pink fire engines aid the Hendersonville Fire Department in their ongoing communication with everyone in the community. “October is also National Fire Prevention Month and we are extremely busy with education and prevention efforts throughout the community.  Our fire department staffs continually attend community events and safety talks at schools, hospitals, churches and more.  The pink t-shirts and fire engines, visually enables us to have further dialogues explaining what and how we do.”

The statistics are startling and demonstrate the level and quality of service that the Hendersonville Fire Department provides to the city. Last fiscal year they serviced over 4,100 major calls, within their 6-mile radius.  75-80% of these were major medical calls. In fact they handle more calls per 1000 population protected than Asheville, Raleigh and Charlotte.  They handle this with a staff of only 27 full time personnel.  They utilize part-time employees to fill vacancies and maintain a minimum of seven personnel on-duty each day.

Glen Gillette (one of the Departments Firefighter/EMT’s) also shared a variety of other statistics, including that during October they also participated in 30-40 public education and prevention events, they also service all of the fire hydrants in the city and perform pre-plans to identify hazards throughout the community.  During October they responded to 342 calls for service (252 emergency medical incidents and 90 fire related incidents).

“We don’t say no.  We do a very good job and as such are always asked to come out and help.”

When an emergency call is received, their team only takes on average 76 seconds from the time the call is received to them leaving the firehouse, on their way to the call.  Their response time and operational structure along with a tight working relationship with other Fire Departments, enables them to ensure that every call is cost effective both in saving lives and in keeping costs down.

One of their biggest challenges is that currently 40% of their emergency calls are simultaneous. This means that over 40% of the time, they’re already responding to a call, when another call comes in. Every fire related emergency involving a structure, according to the North Carolina Department of Insurance, and in accordance with OSHA, require a minimum of 4 people. For the Hendersonville Fire Department that’s a minimum of two trucks for each of these calls due to their current manning levels. The fire department only has three fire engines.  A tight working partnership with other fire departments is vital for not only Hendersonville, but also the region as a whole.

Personally and on behalf of Asheville Signarama, I would like to take this opportunity to thank every one of our local Firefighter/EMT’s for all that they do.  Thank You.

For more information on the Hendersonville Fire Department, visit http://www.cityofhendersonville.org or their facebook page https://www.facebook.com/CityofHendersonvilleFireDept/

About Asheville Signarama

Asheville Signarama is Western North Carolina's full service sign company. Established in Asheville, NC 2011 as an independently and locally owned company, and is quickly becoming known as the place in Western North Carolina for all your sign needs. With over 100 years of experience in sign design, marketing, manufacturing and installation, they can tackle even the most difficult and challenging projects with spectacular results. “Our goal is to provide unparalleled service and expertise to our clients.” For more information, please visit http://www.signarama.com/nc-asheville

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