Community donations pay for new equipment for Kendall FD

Photo by Tom Rivers: Kendall firefighters are shown with new equipment donated to the Kendall Fire Department. Pictured from left include Bill Hardenbrook, Mike Schultz, Randy Davis, Sue Maslyn, Gary Crawford, Stephen Balka, Mike Robb, Jason Hardenbrook, Even Levett, Sue Kingsbury and Tiffanee Robb.

KENDALL – The Kendall Fire Department has about $20,000 in new equipment to serve the community during emergency responses.

One anonymous donor in Kendall gave $6,000 and the Kendall FD used that to purchase light, battery-powered equipment from the Milwaukee company. That includes four light towers, two chain saws, two 9-inch cutoff saws, two 18-inch fans, two leaf blowers, two 6-pack chargers, a reciprocating saw and 20 batteries.

The new equipment is light and battery-powered. The leaf blowers will be used to clean up debris at accidents or from a wind storm. The saws can cut through metal, shingles and concrete. The light towers can be used to illuminate the inside of a house that has lost power.

Randy Davis, the Kendall fire chief, said the new equipment has been in service about two weeks. He said it can be quickly deployed in the field, and is much lighter and easier to maneuver. He said many fire departments are switching to the new battery-powered equipment.

He is thankful to the local resident that met with fire department officials to determine a good use of the donation.

A local business, Partyka farm, also paid for nearly the full cost of a mechanical CPR machine. The Defibtech Lifeline Arm has a value of about $13,000. Davis said Partyka also donated Defibtechs to the Hamlin-Morton-Walker Fire District.

“We appreciate the community’s support of the fire department,” Davis said.