Engine 41 awaits equipment before her trip to San Felipe, Guatemala
So, we have this Fire Engine in our driveway…
Fire Engine 41 has a long and noble history of service to the public. First purchased by the City of Salem, West Virginia, as their front line Fire Engine in 1978, Engine 41 served well and faithfully for many years. She then was sold to a small neighboring department of the McClellan District for continued service there. Replaced by a more modern and larger engine last year, Engine 41 was then acquired by AMEDICAusa. She will become the flagship fire engine for a brand new Fire Department AMEDICAusa is helping to organize in San Felipe, Guatemala.
Engine 41 was well taken care of in her previous service, having been the pride of their fleets. While she has a few battle scars, she drives and pumps as well as ever. Her smaller size makes her perfect for the narrow streets of Guatemala. Her uncomplicated (by today’s standards) electronics and motor make her easier to maintain in a resource poor, Central American department.
Why Guatemala?
Fire in the Central Market, Chichicastenango, Guatemala 2016
Our neighbor to the south lacks many things, but disaster is not one of them. Earthquakes, volcanoes, floods, landslides, hurricanes and wildfires are common in this country as are the same sort of emergencies more commonly occurring in the United States. But they have few resources with which to deal with them. An impoverished country, Guatemala is protected by a few small bands of Firefighters. As brave and dedicated as they are, they often lack basic equipment taken for granted here in the States.
As hard as they work, fires such as the one in Chichicastenango (above) can be truly devastating. Imagine if your town or city lost 150 businesses overnight. Given the proper equipment and training, they could really make a difference. As one mayor told me, “If our firefighters had the tools and equipment you have, there is nothing they couldn’t do.”
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A Project is Born.
Earlier this year the mayor of San Felipe, Héctor De León, came to AMEDICAusa with a proposal. If he built a Fire Station, and hired some qualified firefighters, would we be
interested in helping the city organize, train and equip a brand new fire department, from the ground up.
We were in the process of aiding in the donation of an ambulance to a neighboring municipality, Santa Cruz Muluá, at the time, so we took the opportunity to visit, evaluate their resources and meet with the respective mayors, firefighters and city personnel to see how feasible the project might be. Neither city had a fire engine, though Santa Cruz Muluá did have an organized fire department, and with our help, an ambulance.
Clearly, they had the need. Between the two cities and their surrounding villages, there are about 24,000 families…roughly 100,000 people. Most of these people earn just a couple of dollars a day. Two major roads and many smaller arteries run through the area linking them to the larger city of Retalhuleu to the south. Between the two cities, they had resources enough (barely) to ensure staffing and the required maintenance and supplies. Most importantly, both mayors were enthusiastic supporters of the Fire Service, recognizing the importance of emergency response for their citizens, and were willing to work together to make it happen. Because this is a groundbreaking project, rather than our more usual apparatus replacement or addition donations, a lot more thought and care was put into its implementation.
“Fire Department in a Box” – The Engine 41 Project Concept
In a nutshell, AMEDICAusa is going to deliver a “Fire Department in a Box” to Guatemala. What does that mean? Engine 41 will be delivered with all the basic gear and equipment necessary to respond to alarms the day it arrives. Complete, from personal protective equipment, SCBA, hose and nozzles to hand tools, an extrication set and a first aid kit. It will also arrive with AMEDICAusa instructors to familiarize the San Felipe firefighters with their new equipment and ensure they have the skills and ability to use it safely and effectively. It is no small task, but with your help we will get it done.
Fill ‘er Up!
As any firefighter will tell you, a fire engine is just a great big tool box on wheels. Little can be done with an empty truck. We are making progress. AMEDICAusa has received donated equipment from across the country… fire departments, big and small, from North Carolina to Oregon! However, we are not done yet. Help us meet our goal. Give a small city in Guatemala the ability to save the lives and property of its citizens with your used, but functional, equipment.
In the coming days we will post a detailed list of what equipment Engine 41 needs to go into service. In the meantime, please, contact us to see how you might be able to help.
Money, money money…
Though most of the equipment for the Engine 41 project is donated, there are shipping and transport costs and there are some things that we have no choice but to purchase. Even getting the Fire Engine to Guatemala will cost some cold, hard cash. Your financial donations, large or small, are very much needed, and appreciated. AMEDICAusa is a totally volunteer organization, run solely on donations.No one in the charity receives a salary or other financial compensation. We are a 501(c)(3) tax exempt organization and your contributions are tax deductible. Please, if you can, give generously to AMEDICAusa so we can continue to aid the poor and indigenous peoples of Guatemala.
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