In Pennsylvania, the volunteer fire service has completely changed with the decline in volunteers forcing new strategies for many departments. Where there used to be over 300,000 there is now about 30,000 and that is not where we want to be. Municipalities have had to revert to closing stations, combining resources, company mergers and moving to a combination volunteer/paid staff environment. This is tough on the residents of these communities with added annual tax burden.

Limerick Township is located about 40 miles West of Philadelphia, 1 of 62 municipalities in Montgomery County PA. Current population has the township at 18,500 but with the new census out we anticipate it growing to over 21,000. The department runs between 500-750 calls annually with approximately 75 volunteers. Limerick Fire Department (LFD) is a very progressive department with great volunteers, training programs, community events and fundraisers. The department consists of 2 stations – Limerick and Linfield. We house a 95’ E-One Tower, 100’ Pierce Ladder, KME Heavy Rescue, Pierce Squad, KME Engine, 2 field trucks and Light & Air. We participate in the County Foam Task Force, Fire Task Force and the LDH Task Force.

The Limerick Fire Department has taken great strides in preserving the volunteers with many programs implemented over the last several years. With the new Limerick station built in 2018, we included space to start the live-in program that many other departments have implemented with great success.

We are pleased to announce the Limerick Fire Department Live-In Program. We are developing this program to have certified fire fighters living in the station full-time in exchange for responding to emergency incidents, attending trainings and performing some light duties maintaining the station cleanliness/readiness.

Anyone interested in inquiring about the program, please contact Vice President Rich Flynn at rflynn@lfd51.org.

VP Flynn will forward the entire SOG/program outline to you for a formal application that will be sent to the Limerick Fire Department Board of Directors for consideration.

VP Flynn will also be able to answer any of your questions and to provide clarity and direction.

We appreciate your interest in this program and we look forward to having you a part of our department and our community.

Sincerely,
Ken Shuler, Chief