The volunteer Waunakee Fire Department is looking to grow it members.
Dave Kopp, fire chief, spoke to the Waunakee Rotary Club March 8 about the department and the need for more firefighters. Dave has been chief for a little over a year now. The day he was sworn in marked the same day, 30 years ago, that his father stepped down from the post.
The department formed in 1895 and started with 35 members with Henry Doll as chief.
“Not much has changed now,” Dave said, noting just 40 members make up its roster.
However, in terms of equipment and responses, the changes have been dramatic. In 1907, the department purchased the first engine at a cost of $1,400. Within the next 10-15 years, the department will have to replace Ladder 1, and the cost for that will exceed $1.5 million.
Dave said the larger trucks follow a 30-year rotation. Engine 2 will be 30 years old in 2021, and the department will have to replace it at a cost of between $500,000 and $600,000. Recently, it replaced a 30-year-old Tender Truck and tank. Some ask why those tanks are necessary, Dave said, noting that in rural areas without hydrants, they provide water to fight fires.
Likewise, some in rural areas question why the ladder trucks are needed, he said, adding they’re necessary to fight fires in three-story structures.
The department will also have to replace its air packs at a cost of $7,000 each. Dave said he and Fire Inspector Brian Adler have applied for a grant to cover about 10 percent of the cost.
“If we’re able to get that, that would be a huge savings,” he said.  
Overall, Dave said, the department is looking at some serious replacement costs.
The number of calls has also grown. In the 1960s, the department responded to 20 to 30 calls per year. Last year, it responded to 305, and the Emergency Management Services responded to 1,500.
“We run a lot with them,” Dave said about the EMS, particularly for critical calls and car accidents that require extrication.
The department covers a 50-square-mile area today that also includes parts of Springfield and Vienna, along with Waunakee.
As for members, Dave said the department has changed its bylaws several times to increase the base.
“Finding volunteers is the tough part,” he said, adding several members are coming up for retirement.
It also requires a large time commitment, including 90 hours to become state certified. Meetings are also held Monday nights, along with training time and classes.
Adding volunteers also requires an investment on the department’s part. The gear alone is $3,000, with additional costs for the helmet, radio and training, totaling about $12,000 for each new member.
“We’re looking for someone who’s really dedicated,” Dave said.
Dave read a definition of the verb “volunteer.” It means “to choose to act in recognition of need with the attitude of responsibility without concern for monetary profit.”
At times, firefighters find themselves in tight, stressful situations. The total salary spent for all 40 members is about $103,000, and they put in 4,400 hours firefighting and 1,000 of training.
“If you want to try to keep the volunteer tradition alive, we need volunteers,” he said.
 As for the department’s future, the plan is to hire another inspector to help Adler out and be a firefighter. The hope is to remain a volunteer department for as long as possible. If it needs to hire firefighters, it will add daytime personnel first, Adler added.
Volunteer firefighters are required to live in Waunakee within five miles of the station, be over the age of 18 and have a high school diploma.

 

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Guests: Dave Kopp and Brian Adler, guests of the club.   

 

Visiting Rotarians: None.

 

Birthdays: March 15, Rich Murphy; March 17, Ellen Schaaf

 

Anniversaries: None.

Greeters: March 15, Scott Cochems and John Cullen; March 22, Allan Dassow and Liz Deihs; March 29, Lori Derauf and Breck Dokken.