Bladensburg welcomes probationary fireman Ben Eddowes as a new live in member.  Within 24 hours he ran his first working fire with us, it is going to be a good summer as he obviously carries the newest horseshoe.

Ben, Welcome.... hope you enjoy your new family and learn alot.  The key  to being a great fireman is keeping an open mind, working hard, constantly striving to better yourself and always be willing and open to learning new things constantly.  We look forward to having you as an asset to our company.

We wish to extend a Hearty THANK YOU to all of our loyal bingo patrons.  While you enjoy playing bingo, you may not fully realize the valuable contributions which you make to saving lives and property. 

That's correct!  It is through you that we are able to provide the services which we do to the community.  We would also like you to know;

THERE WILL BE NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN OUR BINGO OPERATIONS, OUR NORMAL SCHEDULE WILL CONTINUE EVERY WEEKEND AS IT HAS BEEN IN THE PAST.

Keeping an all volunteer station running, in a combination system that responds to over 130,000 incidents a year is no easy task.  Station 9 runs 3 Engines, a Ladder Truck and 2 Ambulances to just a little over 6000 calls in the past year and took in 81 working fires.

Our driving force, which are sorely dedicated to making this happen are our live in members and a small number of non live ins that contribute a great deal of time to staffing the station as well as all of the other projects of a volunteer station.

These personnel have acquired some unprecedented numbers, the likes of which they should and truly deserve to hold their heads high in pride as our top runners.

Fireman Brad Polizzi - 1853, Fireman Keith Tickle - 1839, Fireman Kyle Schultz - 1690, Deputy Fire Chief / now Fire Chief Robert Pickel - 1587, Captain Vince Pickel - 1294, Fireman Jason Byrnes - 1242, Fireman Langston Malin - 1208, Lt. Adam Cole -1195, Captain Chris Worthington-May - 1127, Fireman Kevin O'Toole - 1047, Sgt. Marty Mahon - 1036, Sgt. Raymond Davis - 874

EMS Only personnel EMT Melinda Bell - 1119, Lt. Dawn Breakall - 606

A big Thank You to our live in members, who in addition to their regular jobs, provide such levels of comittment and dedication to our Community.

The Officers and Members of the Bladensburg Volunteer Fire Department extend our sincerest condolences to Sis Chaney and Family.  Ms. Clara Baldwin, mother of Sis Chaney was called home to spend enternity in the house of our Lord.

Viewing:  Sunday January 31, 2010 at Gasch's Funeral Home from 2-4 and 6-8. 

Funeral:  Monday February 1, 2010 from Gasch's Funeral Home at 11 AM

The 88th Annual Banquet of the Bladensburg Volunteer Fire Department and Rescue Squad, Inc. and the BVFDandRS Ladies Auxiliary will be held on Saturday February 27th, 2010.  Banquet will be held at the Riverdale Elks Club 6700 Kenilworth Ave. Riverdale, MD.

Banquet will start at 1800 hours with cocktails.  Dinner will be served at 1900 hours with presentation of awards to follow.  Invitations have been sent out to Life Members and all Life Members are invited.  Members, there is a sign up sheet in the day room or you may respond as follows.

Members planning on attending this years banquet shall contact Ms. Val Cherrico by E-Mail at  cherrico7@msn.com  or by calling Ms. Cherrico at 301-927-0437

Members of Bladensburg would like to extend our condolences to the family of Bobby Harmon.  Bobby passed into a greater being after a long hard fight.

Viewing will be Wednesday January 13, 2010 from 2 to 4 PM and again from 7 to 9 PM.  Funeral will be Thursday January 14, 2010 at 12 noon.  Funeral will also be from Gasch's Funeral Home.

MERRY CHRISTMAS to all and to all a HAPPY NEW YEAR! 

By the way Santa, the guys all send a great big "THANK YOU" for all the gifts you have brought them and without being greedy, if you have any extra they said they will certainly take anything else you can send them.  Glad you had a safe and generous holiday.

We have openings in our EMS only division.  Bladensburg provides quality Basic Life Support services to the entire south/western and south/eastern section of Prince George's County.  This ranges from the Montgomery County line (usually inside the beltway) to the Largo area and south/east to Clinton and Allentown Road including mutual aid to the District of Columbia Fire Department.

This year our ambulance will answer well over 3000 calls for service throughout the the above stated response area without fail.  Calls range from the mundane "I just need a ride to the hospital cause my stomach been hurtin for the last 10 days" to multi level Traumas including plenty of auto accidents, shootings and stabbings.

If you're into some serious EMS we have a spot just for you.  Schedule to do a ride along and fill out a membership application immediately and we'll get you started.  We ask for a minimum commitment of only 24 hours per month, we offer free training and uniforms and a very lucrative benefits package.

Join our highly qualified team of PROFESSIONALS today and get your start in delivering quality EMS care.

E. Dallas Carter, born 30 December 1941, perished in a plane crash on 21 October 2009 in South Carolina.  Dallas was a long time resident of Laurel, Delaware.  He is survived by his wife Lucy, his Mother and one brother.  He had three children, Debbie, Donna and Rick and three step-children, Debbie, Tammie and Chip.  He was a Grandfather of 13 and Great Grandfather of 14 children.  Dallas was a 50 year ham radio contester.  he was an avid fisher and a Charter Boat Captain.  He also enjoyed flying radio controlled airplanes.  He was a Volunteer Firefighter and past Fire Chief of the Bladensburg Fire Department.  Dallas served with the US Coast Guard and retired after 37 years with the Federal Government.  A Celebration of Dallas' life will be held on Saturday the 7th of November at the American Legion on Route 24, Trapp Pond Road in Laurel, DE from 2:00 to 6:00 PM (1400 to 1800 hours).  The family requests in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the American Cancer society.

Top 5 Halloween Hazards


Defeat the Top 5 Halloween Hazards
Since Halloween falls on Saturday this year, fatalities and injuries are expected to increase.1 With more than 36 million children out trick-or-treating, you may need additional resources to help keep kids out of the emergency room.

Below are facts you can use to help make parents more aware of Halloween Hazards, along with practical products to help keep trick-or-treaters safe.

Hazard #1 Pedestrian-Car Collisions: Child pedestrians are four times more likely to be killed on Halloween than on any other evening of the year. 2 Parents need to accompany children, make sure they are visible, and model safe pedestrian behaviors themselves.

Hazard #2 Non-Intersection Crossings: Well over half of the Halloween pedestrian fatalities involving children occur at non-intersections, suggesting that mid-block crossings, darting out from between parked cars and other unexpected crossing behaviors may have contributed to their deaths. 3

Hazard #3 Drunk Driving: Drunk driving over Halloween has surpassed drunk driving on New Year's. On Halloween night in 2008, 58% of all highway fatalities involving a driver or a motorcycle rider were alcohol-related. 4

Hazard #4 Falls: Falls are one of the leading causes of injury on Halloween night. While it is important to make sure costumes are "fall-proof," it is also important to clear walkways, yards and driveways of tripping hazards in advance and to carry a flashlight.

Hazard #5 Burns and Eye Injuries: Medical professionals cite an increase in eye and burn-related injuries on Halloween night. Paying attention to children's costumes, using face paint instead of masks and using "soft" toy weapons can help reduce these risks.


1. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration


2. CDC Wonder, "Childhood Pedestrian Deaths During Halloween -- United States, 1975-1996, MMWR 46(42); 987-990 (7/24/1997)


3. National Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as quoted by the Independent-Mail, 10/27/2008, www.independentmail.com/news/2008/oct/27/officials-halloween
 

4. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration