During the last week of June and through the end of July, the Croton-on-Hudson Fire Department's volunteers were dispatched to - and answered - eight Mutual Aid requests to our neighboring Departments. These requests included six FASTeam responses and two coverage assignments from our Tower Ladder 44.

On June 23rd, around 5:45 AM, our FASTeam was dispatched with the Yorktown Heights FD for a reported rubbish fire in close proximity to a commercial building on Commerce Street in "Downtown Y-Town." YHFD units arrived on scene with a small outside fire with no structural extension and returned our Engine 119 enroute.

The next evening, on June 24th, around 9:50 PM, our FASTeam was "added to the Box" at the scene of a vacant residential structure fire in the Lake Mohegan Fire District. On arrival, our team was used to relieve the first due FAST from Yorktown, as their members were aiding in suppression efforts - battling both fire and the heat & humidity of that evening. Car 2081 and Engine 119 operated on scene for a little over an hour before heading back to Croton.

While returning to our district, a massive response of units was heading to Port Chester for a multiple alarm fire. Resources from our neighbors to the south - the Ossining FD - were called to assist at the scene and requested our Tower Ladder 44 to standby in our Headquarters to cover them for nearly three hours. Car 2082 & TL44 provided a crew for this request until 2:30 AM.

The following morning, Lake Mohegan FD was once again battling the stubborn structure fire from the previous evening, and requested coverage to their Headquarters. After about 35 minutes of trying several other departments to send a Ladder Company to cover their district, our TL44 fulfilled this request and made the relocate assignment to LMFD HQ. We provided a standby crew with Peekskill FD's Engine Company for about 30 minutes before returning to service.

A few nights later, on Tuesday, June 28th, our FASTeam was assigned to the working commercial structure fire on Highland Avenue in the City of Peekskill. Due to the large size of the building and threat to exposure buildings, this fire became the equivalent of a 2nd Alarm fire. Members of our FASTeam split into two crews and worked with the Yorktown FD FASTeam to monitor and ensure the safety of firefighters operating within the burning structure. Car 2081 & Utility 14 operated at this scene for nearly 3 1/2 hours before heading back to town. A solid effort by those on scene kept the blaze confined to the original fire building.

On Independence Day, July 4th, our FASTeam was requested to the scene of a structural fire in the Village of Ossining around 5PM. Car 2083 and Engine 119 handled this assignment, arriving on scene only minutes after dispatch. Due to a quick and aggressive effort by members of "The O," the fire was quickly snuffed out and our FAST was returned to service within 20 minutes.

Next up for the FASTeam was a request north into Peekskill again, this time for a house fire on Washington Street on that city's south side on July 18th. Another quick stop by Peekskill's Bravest meant a quick turnaround time for our Engine 119, sending us back into service only 20 minutes after arriving on scene. In accordance to our SOGs, a second FASTeam from Yorktown FD was requested to assist our FASTeam which was at minimum staffing for this incident - many thanks to Y-Town for the assist!

Lastly, rounding out this month or so of Mutual Aid activity, the FASTeam was dispatched to a fire in a public restroom facility in a Park within the City of Peekskill on Sunday 7/24, but canceled while assembling. When this incident was dispatched, our Department was already operating at an emergency in the village as well.

The Croton-on-Hudson Fire Department prides itself on our ability to respond to any requests for assistance in our own district and beyond. If you have an interest in being a part of "Croton's Bravest," email info@crotonfd.org.