$30K To Telford Fire Company For New Firehouse Siren

TELFORD, PA — A local volunteer fire department has received state grant dollars to help with the installation of a new firehouse siren.

Telford Fire Company, Station 75 was given $30,000 for the addition of a new siren, according to the office of State Rep. Steve Malagari, a Democrat representing Pennsylvania's 53rd Legislative District.

The fire company, in existence since 1903, is run entirely by volunteers, and as such, funding for improvements can often be limited.

"When I heard our station was in need of a new aerial siren, I made it a top priority to provide emergency services with the equipment it needs to serve our community," Malagari said in a statement. "Investments in public health and safety are easy to make. With this allocation, these volunteers will be able to better ensure the safety of our residents."

According to Malagari's office, the Telford Fire Company plans to use the grant funding to add an aerial siren to their firehouse since the original siren is located on an old firehouse that is no longer in use.

The old siren is being sold to help fund additional upgrades to the fire company, Malagari's office stated.

Station 75 of the Telford Fire Company serves parts of both Montgomery and Bucks Counties, since the borough sits within both counties.

Telford is located just north of Souderton, Pa., and is bisected by County Line Road.

More information about the fire company can be found on their website.

Pennsylvania, like many other east coast states, have a history with volunteer firefighting.

In fact, Ben Franklin is credited with founding the very first volunteer fire department in the United States.

There has been some debate in modern time about the useful purpose of a loud, aerial siren to alert volunteers about emergency calls, especially since the advent of radios, pagers and cellphones.

Citizen complaints over the years questioned why the need for a loud device to alert about emergency calls, oftentimes smack dab in the middle of residential neighborhoods.

The consensus, however, is that sirens are important to alert volunteers of a fire call because electronic devices like pagers and cellphones can break down or have other problems.

The matter has been reported on in the past.

Check out this past article on the issue in the publication Mental Floss.