Following emergency responders into the night doesn’t appear on my Spy contributing editor profile, but I made an exception Saturday when I heard multiple sirens pierce the late night hours as emergency response vehicles raced up Washington Avenue to a fire at the Driftwood Inn on Hight Street. I wanted to see if Chestertown Volunteer Fire Department employed their tower truck.
The back section of the Driftwood Inn was engulfed in flames as CVFD arrived, along with Kent and Queen Anne’s Emergency Services and other responders from the county. Thankfully, no injuries were reported.
A week ago I watched CVFD check out their $1 million tower truck in front of the department building. Fully telescoped over town it is an engineering sight to behold and central to the department’s ability to reach high buildings or extend laterally from a distance to become a firefighting delivery platform.
The ladder truck, though not fully extended, showed how it is used to deliver fire crews and equipment quickly to strategic spots.
Here are a few moments from the Driftwood Inn fire site. The initial photograph is credited to Chestertown Police Department. The aerial photo was taken by Town Councilman and volunteer fireman Sam Shoge during the checkout mentioned above.
Chestertown Volunteer Fire Department ladder truck.
View from atop extended ladder truck taken from fires station. Credit: Sam Shoge
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