Longwood Fire Company

Whenever you need us, we're there for you.

Perhaps you awake to the smell of smoke in your house. Maybe you’re involved in a car crash. Or perhaps a loved one suddenly needs medical attention.

No matter the emergency, we’re always poised to respond to your 9-1-1 call.

We are Longwood Fire Company, a combination fire department founded in 1921 that provides fire, rescue and emergency medical services to parts of southern Chester County.

We’re also known as Station 25, which is how the county identifies Longwood when dispatching for 9-1-1 emergencies and other calls. Here are some maps to show you our fire and ambulance response territories.

Our fire services operation is run by volunteers — 60-plus at last count — who respond any time of the day or night to whatever emergencies may arise. Our EMS operation is staffed by paid EMTs and paramedics, as well as volunteers, allowing for 24/7 coverage of 9-1-1 calls in LFC’s ambulance territory — and sometimes beyond, depending on the need.

But just as you depend on us, so we, too, depend on you.

LFC is a nonprofit corporation that receives some funding from the municipalities it serves. The remainder of our funding comes through the annual fund drive and various donations from the community — both businesses and individuals — as well as from state and federal grants.

As we begin our fund drive, we would like to tell you more about the men and women who respond to your emergencies, who count on your generous donations each year to allow them to do the best jobs they can for you.

64,380 Hours

That’s approximately the number of hours our members have spent in training to prepare themselves for whatever emergencies may arise.

A volunteer firefighter, depending on how many courses he or she takes throughout the course of the year, will have about 1,073 hours of classroom and hands-on training, typically taken within the first three years of joining the fire company.

That’s the equivalent of working eight hours a day, five days a week, for six months.

Our volunteers are asked to take the National Firefighter I (120 hours) and National Firefighter II (100 hours) classes, which include certifications in areas like Hazardous Materials Operations, CPR and First Aid, and Fire Behavior. They are also asked to take the Vehicle Rescue Technician course (40 hours) and the Water Rescue Awareness course (3 hours).

There are also 264 hours of other recommended courses that our firefighters can take, which include Water Rescue Emergency Response, Emergency Boat Operations, and Rapid Intervention Operations (which teaches firefighters how to rescue trapped firefighters).

In addition, our firefighters train at least once a week (for 2.5 hours) and on weekends (8 hours), and also attend the regularly scheduled fire academies.

Volunteers who want to run the EMS service and work in other support roles must obtain additional training.

Our eight-member board of directors, and the committees that oversee various areas of the operation, are composed of volunteers as well.

If you are interested in becoming a member, give us a call at (610) 388-6880 you can fill out an application by downloading it here.

Download An Application for Membership Here

21,922 Hours

That’s the minimum number of hours that our paid and volunteer ambulance crews have spent in training to prepare for the emergencies they face each day — everything from treating accident victims in the vehicles in which they are trapped, to giving early treatment to those suspected of having strokes, to helping infants and older people with respiratory problems breathe easier, to helping women deliver babies when they can’t make it to the hospital on time, just to name a few.

Longwood’s EMS operation features three full-time paramedics, three full-time EMTs, paid part-time medics and EMTs, and volunteers.

We offer BLS (basic life support) and ALS (advanced life support) services, and our ambulances serve as MICUs, or Mobile Intensive Care Units, which provide crucial and timely care to those in need, en route to the hospital.

Longwood provides the only MICUs in the southern end of Chester County. Our MICUs carry a paramedic and an EMT, which makes it possible to operate its ambulances as advanced life support units and respond to more serious emergencies, such as those involving stroke, heart attack, or other critical injuries where quick care and immediate transport to a hospital can help save a life. Think of the MICU as an emergency room on wheels.

In 2010 our ambulances responded to more than 2,000 calls. There are two ambulances operating seven days a week and at least one operating overnight, ensuring the best 24/7 coverage for the territories we cover.

Emergency Medical Technicians

Our emergency medical technicians, or EMTs, may administer oxygen, control bleeding, splint fractures, immobilize, and assist a patient in administering medication such as an Epi-pen and nitroglycerine. They are highly skilled and assist our paramedics during critical interventions.

To be an EMT, one must initially spend 178 hours in training, and then maintain certifications annually or as needed.

Paramedics

Our paramedics may do everything our EMTs do, plus start intravenous (IV) lines; give varied medications in the field; place a breathing tube directly into the lungs (intubate); perform surgical airways; place intraosseous lines (directly into the bone); pace the heart externally; defibrillate the heart; and decompress a collapsed lung.

To be a paramedic, one must initially spend 1,070 hours in training, and then maintain certifications annually or as needed and complete continuing education.

More Than Emergency Response

But there’s more to Longwood Fire Company than just emergency response.

Our ambulances and personnel are available, for a fee, for events where medical coverage is needed, such as at horse shows like the Willowdale Steeplechase and the Cheshire Point-to-Point; at athletic events like for the Unionville High School rugby and football teams; and at Longwood Gardens-sponsored events like the Wine and Jazz Festival.

We also offer CPR and First Aid classes. Our staff has led classes for the fire company and for businesses in the community.

Community members can donate their vehicles to us for use in training. Donated vehicles are used to practice for motor vehicle accidents and accidents in which drivers are entrapped.

Also, residents or groups interested in learning more about the fire company can schedule tours of the firehouse. We have an open house during Fire Prevention Week (this year Fire Prevention Week is Oct. 9th-15th), and we’d love to see you! Feel free to call us at (610) 388-6880 for more information.

Community Support

Our biggest fundraiser is this fund drive, which helps raise adequate finances for us to continue our operations. We thank those who have so generously contributed in the past, and ask you now to continue your support of us.

We appeal to you to give as much as you can afford. Our appreciation cannot be measured.

And your donations make it possible for us to be there for you – without fail.

Download a Membership Application Here

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www.FirehouseSolutions.com	Longwood Fire Company 1001 E. Baltimore Pike Kennett Square, PA 19348	Emergency Dial 911 Non-Emergency: 610-388-6880 E-mail: info@longwoodfireco.com