- Orange Volunteer Fire Company
-
Orange Volunteer Fire Company, Inc. 
Established 1921 Staffing Volunteer Annual Calls 750+ Strength 50 Stations 1 Engines 2 Trucks 1 Squads 1 (Rescue Engine) EMS Level BLS (First Responder Only) Fire chief L.O. Clements Website http://www.orangevfc.com/ [1] The Orange Volunteer Fire Company or OVFC is a volunteer fire department providing fire suppression, hazardous materials response, and specialized rescue services to the area in and around Orange, Virginia[2]. The department is a dynamic, 100% volunteer organization with over 50 members. Based in the Town of Orange, the department responds to emergencies in the Town, in Orange, Virginia, and runs mutual aid into Madison, Culpeper, and Louisa counties in Virginia.
Contents
History
[3][4][5] On November 8, 1908 at 5:30 a.m., a gentleman named Towles Terrell fell asleep while smoking a cigarette. The resulting fire began to consume buildings around the main portions of Town of Orange along Railroad Avenue. The only night policeman for the town noticed smoke shortly after 5:30 a.m. and sounded the community alarm by ringing the bells of the Orange Baptist Church. Citizens responded to the alarm since there was no established fire company in Orange. It was reported that every citizen brought a bucket to fight the fire. The community did own an antique hand-drawn Pumper, which was placed into service from nearby wells. Since there was no public water system, wells throughout the town were being utilized. The fire continued to grow. At 8:00 a.m., a special telegraph was sent to Charlottesville, Virginia requesting help to fight a now raging inferno, which enveloped all of the business community of the town. A special train arrived at 9:00 a.m. with 14 Charlottesville firefighters, a steamer, 3 horses, a railroad tanker car of water, and much needed firefighting equipment. The fire was extinguished later that night. This was the Great Fire of Orange. In response to this fire, a public water system was installed in 1910. Another great fire occurred within the county in 1916. This fire was in Gordonsville, which was the hub of the county at that time. A volunteer fire company was begun in Gordonsville following the fire.
On January 24, 1921 a group of citizens met to begin the formation of the Orange Volunteer Fire Company. Led by A.J. Harlow, the Mayor of Orange, a campaign was initiated to obtain funds for purchasing more fire fighting equipment. Also, E.H. Rouse was appointed the first Fire Chief of the company. Dr. Rouse, as he was called, was a pharmacist in town and often parked the company’s only motor driven Pumper at his store. A small firehouse was constructed behind the Orange Courthouse from donated labor and donated materials. The company operated out of this building until 1939 when it sold the building to Orange County for office space for $4,000.
Under Dr. Rouse uniforms consisting of white shirts, pants, and hats with red chest sashes were created. Dr. Rouse organized athletic teams and served as the coach. He also oversaw the competition teams for the Virginia State Fire Convention. The earliest record of the Orange team winning an event was reel team in 1925. Dr. Rouse organized a marching band in the 1930s. Many of the O.V.F.C. members had never played a musical instrument, but within 1 year they were giving musical concerts and marching in parades. The base drum from the original band is still located at O.V.F.C.
In 1938, the company moved to the corner of Belleview Avenue and Main Street into a new building which cost $32,000. This building was three stories tall, had 18 rooms, a large banquet room including a full kitchen, and a truck room that fronted Main Street. At the time of the move, the company had three units: a salvage truck, a Pumper, and a ladder truck. An addition was made to this building in the early 1960s to allow parking of the newer, larger fire apparatus. The company remained at this location until 1984.
In 1984, the current Orange Volunteer Fire Company building was completed. At a cost of $550,000, the building was built for the future. It has four drive-through bays, meeting rooms, offices, recreation room, and equipment rooms. The building is located on the company’s fairgrounds near the intersection of Caroline Street and Route 20.
Succession of Chiefs:
E.H. Rouse
Ernest Brockman
Slim Winslow
Robert Whitlock
Wesley Tate (1972–1975)
Walker Carpenter (1976–1981)
E.A. Fox, Jr. (1982–1984)
E.S. Roby, III (1985–2007)
L.O. Clements (2008–Present)
Membership
[6] Requirements
- 16 years of age for the Junior Company (16 – 17 year olds)
- 18 years of age for the Senior Company
- Any age for Associate Membership (non-suppression)
- Live within 5 miles of the station (205 Caroline St. for active members)Organization
- Over 50 Active and Associate Members – 100% VOLUNTEER
- 1 Class A Pumper
- 1 Class A Pumper/Tanker
- 1 Class A HDRP (Squad)
- 1 105' Rear Mount Aerial (Truck Company)
- 4 support/utility vehicles
- County owned Hazardous Materials TruckApplication Process
- Complete an application for membership
- Submit the application to any member to be brought up in a business meeting or mail the application to the address above
- At the next business meeting (1st Monday night of any month), the applicant will be brought up and assigned for investigation
- At the following business meeting, the investigation results will be reported and a vote will occur. Applicants must receive a favorable vote from 75% of the Active Senior Members voting.
- Upon confirmation, the applicant will be notified and must meet with the Chief to review Company SOG’s and other procedures/policies. The member will then be issued equipment and a pager and can begin responding to alarmsOperational Ranks
Chief
1st Assistant Chief
2nd Assistant Chief
Captain
Lieutenant (6)
Firefighter
Probationary Firefighter
Junior Firefighter
Station
205 Caroline St. Orange, VA 22960 [1]
The current station was occupied in 1984. It boasts four drive-through bays, meeting rooms, offices, recreation room, and equipment rooms. The building is located on the company’s fairgrounds property near the intersection of Caroline Street and Route 20.
Apparatus
Apparatus Name Year Make Model Classification Description/Use Engine 23 1994 Seagrave Marauder Pumper Class A triple combination pumper - 1250/750 Tanker 23 2000 Pierce Dash Pumper Class A triple combination pumper - 1250/1500/20/40 Squad 23 2007 Pierce Dash HDRP Heavy duty rescue pumper - 1500/650/25 Truck 23 2008 Pierce Velocity Aerial 105' Rearmount Aerial - 2000/500 Brush 23 2008 Chevrolet Sliverado 3500 Brush Brush truck with a Slagle skid - 250/150/5 Support 23 1990 GMC Sierra 3500 Support Basic support vehicle used primarily as a second response unit to MVCs. Also runs first to EMS calls Utility 23 1988 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Support Support vehicle Chief 23 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe LS Command Department Chief's vehicle Antique Salvage & RS 1931 Seagrave N/A Salvage Antique Salvage & Rescue Squad restored and purchased by local resident John Ellis.
Competition Team
[9]
The Orange Volunteer Fire Company boasts one of the premier competition teams in Virginia. The team participates in annual events at the Virginia State Firefighters Association [2] Conference/Expo, held every August. Holding records[10] in the Two-man Air Pack and Six-Man Ladder events, the Orange Competition Team won the William Packet Total Points Award in 1992, 1997–2002, and 2004-2010.[11][12][13][14]
References
- ^ http://www.orangevfc.com/about.html
- ^ http://orangecountyva.gov/emerg_serv/fireandrescue.asp
- ^ http://www.orangevfc.com/history.html
- ^ http://www.orangedowntownalliance.org/content.cfm?nav=2&view=History
- ^ http://www.townoforangeva.org/index.aspx?NID=126
- ^ http://www.orangevfc.com/recruitment.html
- ^ http://www.orangevfc.com/apparatus.html
- ^ http://www.singerassociates.com/delivery/Fall08/OrangeVFCAerialLadder/index.cfm
- ^ http://www.orangevfc.com/convention.html
- ^ http://www.orangevfc.com/pastresults.html
- ^ http://www2.orangenews.com/ocn/lifestyles/announcements/article/ovfc_wins_again/44274/
- ^ http://www.charlottesvillenewsplex.tv/news/headlines/27333164.html
- ^ http://www.charlottesvillenewsplex.tv/news/headlines/53688372.html
- ^ http://www.orangevfc.com/conventionresults.html
External links
Official Orange Volunteer Fire Company Website http://www.orangevfc.com/
Categories:- Orange County, Virginia
- Fire departments in Virginia
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