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Solomons Featured in Monthly Profile
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By Webmaster Norman Rea
April 4, 2016

The Solomons Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department was featured this month as the "Company Profile" in the Maryland Fire Dispatch. Special thanks to all the members that assisted with all the collection information to make this article possible. The Volunteers are proud to be featured and are proud of our rich history.

MD Fire Dispatch Text:

Solomons, also known as Solomons Island, is located at the southern most tip of Calvert County, where the
Patuxent River meets the Chesapeake Bay. Solomons was settled in 1680 and was known as Bourne’s Island. After the Civil War, a Baltimore businessman, named Isaac Solomon, built a cannery in Solomons and renamed the area. During the early 1800’s, Solomons became famous for it’s shipyards that built the Bugeyes, the forerunner to the skipjacks that were used during the War of 1812 against the British.

Prior to 1926, there were no organized EMS or fire companies in Calvert County. When a fire started in the community the citizens using buckets and formed bucket brigades to control or extinguish the fire. The first two fire companies in Calvert County were formed in 1926, one in North Beach and the other in Prince Frederick. The one in Prince Frederick was disbanded three years later, leaving only one Fire Company in Calvert County until 1941 when the Calvert County Volunteer Fire Department was formed and located once again, in Prince Frederick.

Emergency Medical Services prior to 1955 in the Solomons area was nonexistent. Citizens depended on
local doctors if they became sick or injured. If they needed to go to the hospital the doctor would arrange to have the patient driven to the hospital in Prince Frederick. In October of 1954, a group of concerned citizens met at the Solomons Island Yacht Club, to discuss the need for an Emergency Rescue Service in Calvert County, especially in the Solomons area.

After several meetings it was decided to form the Calvert County Volunteer Rescue Squad (CCVRS). On
January 1, 1955, the Rescue Squad started operations using a 1955 Studebaker ambulance. The Rescue Squad had 13 Charter Members and was the first Rescue Squad in Calvert County. The ambulance was housed in a metal shed until a building was purchased just north of Solomons Island. The building was renovated to house the Rescue Squad in the latter half of 1955.

Because of the distances the Calvert County Volunteer Fire Department, in Prince Frederick and the North
Beach VFD, had to travel to get to the Solomons area. Several meetings were held to discuss adding a fire division to the Rescue Squad in 1963. The outcome of these meetings was the formation of a fire division that became operational on September 18, 1963, making it the third organized fire department in
Calvert County.

The Fire Division’s first piece of apparatus was a 1963 International/American pumper, featuring a 500 gpm
pump with a 500 gallon water tank. This unit is still owned by the department and has recently been completely restored to its original state. The engine was temporarily housed in Dowell’s garage until the Rescue Squad building was renovated to house the pumper. In December of 1967, the CCVRS changed its name to the Solomons Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department (SVRSFD).

During the 1970’s the department updated and expanded its apparatus fleet to meet the ever increasing
work load. In 1971, a new Ford C9000/Pierce 1000/1000 engine (E-31) was purchased. Two years later, a new International/Pierce FWD Brush Unit was placed in service as Brush 3, the company’s first brush unit.
The next year, because of the amount of waterways that surrounded Solomons, the department placed a
1974 Fire Boat in service, as Fire Boat 3.

In 1977, the Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge, connecting Calvert County with St. Mary’s County, was opened. During the late 1970’s, space in the station was becoming a problem, because of the equipment the department had on its roster. The volume of calls was also increasing. The company approved the purchase of 7.5 acres of land at the corner of Dowell Road and Rt. 765 and started construction on a 4-bay station that was placed in operation on February 22, 1980.

To round out the 1970’s, a new Ford C8000/Pierce pumper with a 750 gpm and a 1000 gallon tank was placed in service in 1977, as Engine 34. During the 1980’s two more pieces of equipment were added to the department’s fleet. The first was a new Chevy K30/Pierce mini-pumper featuring a 475 gpm pump and a 300 gallon water tank, designated Engine 35. In 1984 a new Ford F-350/Saulsbury brush unit, featuring a 250 gpm pump and a 200 gallon water tank was placed in service as Brush 3 and later changed to BX-3 when it was assigned to the sub-station.

The 1990’s brought about some major changes to both, the station and the apparatus fleet. The department’s first custom built units were placed in service in 1990. Truck 3 is an E-One Hurricane 110’ aerial ladder truck that was placed in service and is still in service today. Engine 31, was an E-One Cyclone Pumper featuring a 1500 gpm pump with a 750 gallon water tank and 50 gallon
foam cell. One year later, in 1991 the department added two additional bays along with office space for the department’s
officers and a training room. Another E-One unit was placed in service in 1991. It was an E-One Cyclone Engine/Tanker featuring a 1500 gpm pump with a 2000 gallon water tank and 50 gallon foam cell.

In 1991 a 3-acre piece of land on Little Cove Road, was purchased and a 2-bay sub-station was built. The substation improved the response time in the northern portion of the department’s first due area. In 1993 a second E-One Cyclone pumper featuring a
1250 gpm pump with a 1000 gallon water tank and 50 gallon foam cell was placed in service, as Engine 34. This unit is still in service today and is housed at the sub-station.

A Freightliner FL80/E-One Rescue, designated Rescue 3, featuring a 1250 gpm pump with a 500 gallon water tank and 30
gallon foam cell was also placed in service in 1993. Rescue 3, the department’s first rescue unit, carried all of the department’s
rescue tools and equipment including an Amkus Rescue Tool System.

In 1995, the department replaced the Boston Whaler Fire Boat with a new Winninghoff 28’ V-Hull Fire Boat featuring a 500
gpm pump. Boat 3 is powered by twin Evinrude 250 hp outboard engines and is housed on a lift at the Solomons Pilot House.
In 2006, the department placed a new Ford brush unit with a skid package in service.

In 2013 a GMC Yukon, Command 3, was placed in service. In 2014, after serving for over 20 years, three of the E-One’s
were replaced with new 2013 Rosenbauer units, all featuring the department’s new color scheme of black over red.
Engine 31, a 2013 Rosenbauer Commander R711 pumper, featuring a 1500 gpm pump and a 1000 gallon tank. Unit is powered
by a Cummins ISL9, 450 hp diesel engine with an Allison automatic transmission. Engine 33, is also a 2013 Rosenbauer, Commander
engine/tanker, with a 1500 gpm pump and 2000 gallon tank. Unit is powered by a Cummins ISL12 500 hp diesel engine.
Rescue 3, the third unit, is also a 2013 Rosenbauer Commander Rescue Unit, with a 750 gpm pump, 750 gallon tank
and 30 gallon foam cell. Unit carries all of the department’s rescue tools and equipment including a complete Holmatro Rescue
Tool System. Unit is powered by a Cummins ISL9 450 hp diesel engine.

Since 1955, when the Calvert County Volunteer Rescue Squad was formed, there have been many different types and styles of ambulances used by the Rescue Squad over the years. The Rescue Squad started with a 1955 Studebaker ambulance and 60
years later the department runs three state-of-the-art ambulances, the newest being, Ambulance 38 a 2014 Freightliner
M2/PL Custom ambulance, that are rotated between the two stations, all staffed with volunteer members. Today, under the leadership of Chief Joseph Ford, Sr., on the suppression side and President Bernie Shea on the Administration side, the department is 100% volunteer, operating out of two stations with 2 engines, 1 engine/tanker, 1 rescue engine, 1 ladder, 2 brush units, 3 ambulances, 1 fire boat, 2 command units and various other support vehicles.

The main station in Solomons houses Engine 31, Engine/Tanker 33, Truck 3, Rescue/Engine 3, Brush 3 and two
ambulances, both BLS or ALS, depending on staffing. The sub-station, on Little Cove Point Road, in the northern
section of Solomons first due area, houses Engine 34, BX 3 and one of the ambulances. The department ran 715 fire/rescue calls, 2497 EMS calls and 19 water incidents in 2015. The department has a total membership of 125, with 80 riding members, covering 29 sq. miles, with a population of about 21,000 that increases 3 fold during the summer months.

Solomons has a suburban type setting with some commercial and retail businesses in Solomons Island and along Rt. 765.
The department covers the Dominion Cove Point Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) terminal. The LNG terminal, has the capacity
to hold 14.6 billion cubic feet of LNG in its seven storage tanks. The terminal has an off shore dock in the Chesapeake Bay
where state-of-the-art LNG ships off load LNG thru pipe lines underwater that go to the terminals insulated storage tanks. The
department holds regular drills with Dominion and carries specialized equipment, bought by the Dominion, to use in the event
of an incident at the terminal. Solomons also covers about 230 miles of shoreline along the Chesapeake Bay, Patuxent River and the many Creeks along the shorelines.

The department funds its annual operating expenses thru an annual fund drive, several concerts, a golf tournament, hall
rental fees and several other fund raisers during the year. It also receives some funds from Calvert County.
The department has also received several grants. One was from MIEMSS (State) for new AED’s on all of Solomons apparatus.
They also received a grant from Calvert Memorial Hospital for a Lukas Compression Tool. The leadership of the Solomons Volunteer Rescue Squad and Fire Department has set a forward looking path for the future with the recent purchase of four new units, an engine, an engine/tanker, a rescue and an ambulance. The state-of-the-art equipment will enable the department’s
dedicated and well trained officers and members, to be able to continue to serve the Solomons community and surrounding
areas, with second to none Fire/Rescue/EMS services, well into the future.

Publishers Note:
A special thanks to Norman Rea, Communications Officer, for his time and effort put into compiling the information and photos
used in this article. Our thanks also go out to Chief Ford, Sr., Thomas Yowell, Safety Officer and Kiersten Shea, Recording
Secretary for their help in making this article possible. Our thanks also to Howard Meile, III for his excellent photographs
of Solomons past and present apparatus.

Units: Company 3
 
Attachments:
Attachment Solomons Profile Page 1.pdf  (3,800k)
Attachment Solomons Profile Page 2.pdf  (5,469k)
Attachment Solomons Profile Page 3.pdf  (3,986k)
Attachment Solomons Profile Page 4.pdf  (9,196k)
 
 

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