Fire Department, The New York City FDNY 05
Fire Department, The New York City FDNY 05 : History: 1865-1898: The officers and firemen worked a continuous tour of duty, with 3 hours a day off for meals and one day off a month, and were paid salaries according to their rank or grade. 1865 also saw the first adoption of regulations, although they were fairly strict and straitlaced. Following several large fires in 1866 which resulted in excessive fire losses and a rise in insurance rates, the fire department was reorganized under the command of GeneralAlexander Shaler, and with military discipline the paid department reached its full potential which resulted in a general reduction in fire losses. In 1870 the merit system of promotion in the Fire Department was established. Southwestern Westchester County (which would later become the western Bronx) was annexed by New York in 1874 and the volunteers there were phased out and replaced by the paid department. This pattern was repeated as City services expanded elsewhere. There are ten volunteer fire companies left in New York City that respond to calls in their neighborhood in addition to a normal assignment of FDNY units. They are typically in more isolated neighborhoods of the city. By borough, the volunteer companies are: (a) Bronx (2) - Edgewater Park Volunteer Hose Company No. 1, Aviation Volunteer Fire Department Association Inc. ; (b) Brooklyn (1) - Gerritsen Beach Fire Volunteers Inc. ; (c) Queens (5) - West Hamilton Beach VFD, Broad Channel VFD, Roxbury VFD, Rockaway Point VFD, and Point Breeze VFD; (d) Staten Island (2) - Oceanic H&L Company No. 1 and Richmond Engine Company No. 1. The Staten Island volunteer companies are dispatched by the Staten Island Communications Office and operate on the FDNY Staten Island frequency. Broad Channel and West Hamilton Beach have teleprinters in parallel with the FDNY fire companies that also serve their area. The Brooklyn and first four volunteer companies in Queens also provide ambulance services. Broad Channel VFD has over 102 years of active service
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