Franklin's 1949 American Lafrance Fire Truck Returns - June 30, 2020 (YouTube)

"The Franklin Fire Department has received an exceptionally generous donation from Edward Guzowski. He has donated a 1949 American LaFrance Model 7-75-AJO 75’ Service aerial truck.

We would like to thank Edward Guzowski for his generous donation. The Fire Truck has been kept in impeccable condition and remains a functional driving vehicle.

The truck he is donating is the first ladder truck the Town of Franklin ever bought."

The brief ceremony acknowledging the donation was held at Station 1 today

Video link = https://youtu.be/0L17vwcxvKc

Rep Jeff Roy tries out the 'air conditioned' front seat

side view of the vehicle

 end view of the 75' aerial ladder

The Town Council legislation for action to accept the donation on June 3, 2020
https://www.franklinma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif591/f/mai/files/10b._resolution_20-30_gift_acceptance_-_fire_dept._-_truck.pdf


View the set of photos taken on June 30, 2020 at Station 1

Live reporting - Fire Station Bldg Committee disolved

Resolution 08-59: Dissolution of Fire Station Building Committee (Tabled on 10/15/08)

Approved 8-0

Ken Norman representative of the committee this evening along with Fire Chief McCarraher.

In the News - Plain St fire, schools re-open

Franklin woman escapes blaze

By Danielle Ameden/Daily News staff

A napping woman escaped her second-story Plain Street apartment without injury yesterday afternoon, awoken by fire alarms and fleeing as her house filled with smoke and flames, officials said. As Cheryl Colby ran out of the185 Plain St. home, neighbors say they called 911 and ran to the rescue, setting up a ladder, believing Colby's son was still upstairs. As it turned out, they said, he was not home. Fire Chief Gary McCarraher said the two-alarm blaze, called in at 4:20 p.m., is under investigation. It resulted in substantial fire, smoke and water damage to the home, he said.

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Fire caused by match or cigarette

By Danielle Ameden/Daily News staff

Fire Chief Gary McCarraher Tuesday, Aug. 2, announced the two-alarm blaze that roared through the home at 185 Plain St. Monday was accidental, caused by careless disposal of smoking materials. James Colby, who lives on the second floor, was smoking a cigarette around 1 or 1:30 p.m. on the wooden back deck before he left the house. Either a match or the cigarette butt later ended up igniting the deck, with fire ripping up the two-family home's vinyl siding to the attic, the chief said.

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Franklin schools to reopen after pipe explosion

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

School will resume tomorrow at Oak Street Elementary School, Horace Mann Middle School, and the Early Childhood Development Center after Superintendent Wayne Ogden closed the schools today for emergency repairs. Early Labor Day morning, a piece of plumbing that controls hot water and steam failed and exploded at the school complex at 224 Oak St., Ogden explained. "The pressure was so intense, it blew a hole through the sheetwall in the utility closet ... and shorted an electrical panel for the whole complex," which set off the fire alarm, he said. The Fire Department and facilities workers cleaned up the water and started to repair the electrical panel on Monday, he said, but were unable to buy plumbing parts on Labor Day weekend.

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"they have all the school buses"

By Peter Reuell/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Aug 06, 2008 @ 10:00 AM

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FRANKLIN —

They may be nearly impossible for law enforcement officials to prevent, but if anthrax attacks like those following the 9/11 terrorist attacks happened today, state and local officials say they could deal with the aftermath.

While every city and town in the state has an emergency plan which details information like shelter locations and evacuation routes, in the weeks following the mailing of anthrax to more than a half-dozen news agencies and members of Congress, there was a flurry of activity as plans were updated to include the possibility of a biological attack. At that time, millions of dollars in grants were handed out to improve detection of dangerous agents, including anthrax.

"The protocol we had pre-2001 - we thought this was going to be a once-in-a-lifetime event," said Martin Greene, deputy director of the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services' Hazardous Materials Response program.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News here

Franklin Fire Dept. new Tower Truck

Franklin Fire Dept. new Tower Truck, originally uploaded by shersteve.

The new $860,000 Tower 1 truck is at home in the new fire station in downtown Franklin, MA.

The truck will be paid for over five years, the first payment this year at $160,000, followed by four yearly payments of $175,000 each.

With a little luck it will be used for training and parades. If it does get called out to be used in a fire, the safety features it contains will hopefully enable a safe operation and rescue, if necessary.

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From the Town Council meeting authorizing payment (audio and text)

From the Finance Committee meeting authorizing payment (audio)

New Ladder Truck arrives next week

From the Franklin Finance Committee meeting on 5/6/08, Jeff Nutting talks of the new ladder truck (or aerial platform) being delivered next week. The committee approved the transfer of money for the first payment of the $869,000 total cost. $169,000 this year; $175,000 for each of the next four years.

The purchase and delivery of this truck had been delayed until the new firestation was open and ready to fit it.

TIme: 6 minutes, 57 seconds



MP3 File

Fire Station Open House (audio)

The ceremonies from the Fire Station Open House on Saturday. The speakers were in order: Lou Allevato, Building Committee Chair; Chris Feeley, Town Council Chair; Rep Vallee and his special assistant; Chief McCarraher; and Father Bob from St Mary's.

Time: 17 minutes, 50 seconds



MP3 File

Franklin Fire Station Open House 4/12/08

Franklin Fire Station Open House 4/12/08, originally uploaded by shersteve.

The speakers (in order of appearance) at the Fire Station Open House held Saturday 4/12/08:

Top left - Lou Allevato, Building Committee Chair
Top right - Chris Feeley, Town Council Chair
Mid left - Rep Vallee and his special assistant
Mid right - Chief McCarraher
Bottom left - Father Bob
Bottom right - the flag raising

In the News - solar powered trash, fire station

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 12, 2008 @ 10:00 AM

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FRANKLIN —

Just in time for the town's Earth Day celebration April 19, the public works department has installed two $4,000 solar-powered trash compactors on Main Street and at the Beaver Pond recreation complex.

The "BigBelly" cordless trash compactors can hold up to 200 gallons of garbage - up to six times the typical load, said Denise Zambrowski, Environmental Affairs Coordinator for the Department of Public Works.

"It's really a neat invention. Using solar energy, it will help us maintain a neat (town), just controlling litter and trash in our parks, in our ball fields.

"It's a really interesting invention to help us deal with solid waste management in public places," said Zambrowski, who first learned about BigBelly at an energy efficiency workshop.

Read the full article at the Milford Daily News

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By Staff reports

Milford Daily News

Posted Apr 12, 2008 @ 11:05 PM

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FRANKLIN —

The town of Franklin on Saturday opened its new fire station on West Central Street. The new 22,250 square foot station more than twice of the facility it replaced, which was built on the same site in 1922 and demolished last year.

This is the complete article but you can click through to see the photo at the Milford Daily News.

In the News - fire station open house, blues at Cottage St Pub

By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 10, 2008 @ 11:31 PM

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FRANKLIN —

Eight years after the idea was first proposed, the town has a new fire station.

To mark the occasion, the department is hosting a dedication ceremony tomorrow and inviting the public inside for a look around.

"We're thrilled," said Fire Chief Gary McCarraher. "Our employees went from the old station, which was virtually crumbling, to (13 months in) a trailer.

"It's great to get them into a professional place to conduct business," McCarraher said of the new $9.3 million building constructed on the site of the former station at 40 West Central St.

"The troops really suffered during construction. It was cramped, especially in the winter," he said.

McCarraher and Lou Allevato, chairman of the Fire Station Building Committee, Town Council Chairman Chris Feeley and other dignitaries will speak at the dedication, which begins at 11 a.m.

The station will be open for public tours until 2 p.m.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News

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By Joyce Kelly/Daily News staff

GHS

Posted Apr 10, 2008 @ 11:13 PM

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FRANKLIN —

A local pub owner has given the green light to the blues.

Inspired by the widely known Yard Rock Cafe in Quincy, Cottage Street Pub owner Phil Butkevich is bringing the blues to town this month.

Those who are blues fans run "from one end of the spectrum to the other - the blue collar worker to the white collar worker," Butkevich said.

"It's good sitting music, and it's good if you want to dance. Sometimes you're at a club, and the music's kind of loud. Personally, I think when you look at bands and hear the trombone, brass, bass and bugles, you're getting better quality sound," he said.

Every weekend this month, Butkevich will host at least one blues band from the Interstate 495/Rhode Island area at his 130-person-capacity pub.

Read the full article in the Milford Daily News

Open House - New Fire Station

Yes, the new station will be open for viewing by anyone in the Town:

April 12th 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM

Fire station update

Fire station is ahead of schedule

By Michael Morton/Daily News staff

FRANKLIN - Construction of the new $9.3 million fire station is ahead of schedule and slightly under budget, with officials fairly confident that the town can scrape together enough money to open the building early.

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Note: Jeff Nutting's comments to the Town Council meeting January 9th

In the news - downtown fire at Delux Tux

Patriots lose Super Bowl, but their wedding tux orders are salvaged

By Michael Morton/Daily News staff

FRANKLIN - While a three-alarm fire destroyed much of his brother-in-law’s downtown business just as Super Bowl XLII got under way, John Ricci discovered yesterday that customers’ paperwork somehow made it through the blaze relatively intact.

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Exemptions, Snow budget, Fire station (audio)

A resolution is passed to allow three police officers to also work part time for the School Dept as coaches at FHS. The snow budget is almost used up. The new Fire Station is ahead of schedule and could open early but there is currently not a budget for it. An update will come in a month or so as the options are explored.

Time: 3 minutes, 54 seconds



MP3 File

Fire Station - new doors

Fire Station - new doors, originally uploaded by shersteve.

New doors!

Just in time, it is getting cold out there.

Fire station sidewalk update

I forgot to mention that coming home from the train station on Tuesday I came by the new fire station and the sidewalk had already been torn up. Let's hope that this time when they pour the concrete, they put a few more signs and ropes around to keep the walkers away.