Baldwin First Aid Company

were appointed members of the new rescue squad. They were sworn in by Chief Sal Sorrentino who spelled out their duties. These three became the nucleus of a team which was later expanded to company status of the Fire Department. One year later, on March 12, Francis Musso was appointed Acting Lieutenant and charged with organizing a First Aid unit. Musso drew upon volunteers Arthur Hults, William H. Wright, Joseph Smidt, Richard Demerest, Donald Fisher, Claude Noon, Fred Gottlieb, and Charles Bedell as the Department's first official firstaidmen. Until 1938, the First Aid Rescue Squad was made up of volunteer firemen attached to Hose Company No. 2. Emergency calls during that period averaged 16 calls per year. On May 15, 1938, the unit became a separate Company of the Department and had elected as officers Captain Francis Musso, Lieutenant Arthur Hults, Secretary Richard Demerest, and Treasurer Charles Brunner. Since the humble beginning, when their first piece of apparatus was an old Graham-Paige sedan with the back seat chopped away and converted into a rescue truck, to the present where they are responsible to respond with three pieces of apparatus, two cardiac-equipped ambulances and a heavy rescue truck, Baldwin's First Aid Unit has made outstanding contributions in countless hours of community service and rendering aid and assistance. Many members of the First Aid Company have risen from the ranks of firefighter to become Lieutenants and Captains. Several have reached the highest office, Chief of Department. Three members of the Company, the late Henry Wright, the late Roy Eckels, and Joseph C. Koch, have served the community as Fire Commissioners. In June of 1938, the District acquired a new emergency truck. It made its first public appearance in the July 4th parade, which in those days was a community event much like Memorial Day is today. As the years went by, the Board of Fire Commissioners purchased new and modern equipment as it was developed. In 1954, a new GMC heavy duty rescue truck was purchased to replace the 1938 emergency truck. "BIG MOE," which it was lovingly called, was capable of handling most emergencies for those times. The District forefathers, the Commissioners, purchased the first ambulance in 1963. It was a Cadillac and was fully equipped with the most up-to-date first aid equipment available. It was given the radio designation "2010" and was placed into service on February 25th. The purchase of the ambulance increased the desire of the members of the First Aid Company to enhance their knowledge and further develop their emergency medical skills. Members at this time took First Aid classes given by the American Red Cross. As the years went by, the training was taken over by the Nassau County Fire/Police Academy. Members who participated in these programs graduated as Emergency Medical Technicians, a certification recognized by the New York State Health Department. Through the years since the germination of the idea in 1932, the First Aid Company has distinguished itself and has been awarded many group commendations as well as individual honors. An example of the dedication of its members, was the participation in rescuing the injured in the Long Island Railroad train wreck in Rockville Centre. Climbing into the overturned cars, the First Aid Company members worked hand-in-hand with doctors extricating people from the train. The late Roy Eckels was awarded a special life-saving commendation by the American Red Cross for restarting a cave-in victim's breathing. Ex-Captains Paul Cimini and Christopher Schwenker, Jr. received the "Fireman of the Year" Award given by the Town of Hempstead for their dedication and outstanding community service. The First Aid Company members have earned the admiration of their fellow firefighters, the firefighters from surrounding towns, and the gratitude of those people they have assisted over the years. In 1973, several members of the Company were chosen to be part of a Nassau County pilot program which would bring Advanced Cardiac Life Support to the residents of Baldwin for the first time. They became the first Advanced Emergency Medical Technicians in the Baldwin Fire Department. Since that first class, countless members completed the advanced training required to become Advanced Emergency Medical Technicians. As required to be part of this program, the Board of Fire Commissioners agreed to purchase the first set of cardiac equipment. The "Gray Radio" and Datascope allowed those members who had completed the necessary training to talk with and send electrocardiograms to the Nassau County Medical Center (Meadowbrook Hospital in the old days) where a doctor would evaluate the information sent and give verbal orders via radio. This provided instant care to those patients in need. The new "Telemetry Equipment" proved its worth before it could be placed on the ambulance. While at the dedication ceremony, attended by the Board of Fire Commissioners, Chiefs of Department, the First Aid Company, and selected members of the Community from different groups, a request for an ambulance was transmitted. A call for help had been received from a woman in need across the street from Fire Headquarters in the Baldwin Garden Apartments. The alarm was sounded and the information given was "woman with chest pain." The members of the First Aid Company in attendance gathered up the newly dedicated equipment and responded in the ambulance to the alarm. The woman, complaining of pains in her chest, was connected to the telemetry equipment, the radio was activated, and Medical Control was contacted. The electrocardiogram sent by the telemetry equipment showed that the woman's heart had stopped, she was "straight line." Directed by the doctor at the Medical Center via radio, the newly-trained members of the First Aid Company established an intravenous "life-line" through which they injected heart-stimulating drugs, did C.P.R. (Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation), and shocked the woman externally with an electrical shock from the de-fibrillator which had just minutes before been placed in service. The electrical stimulation, coupled with the heart-stimulating drugs given intravenously, was the life-saving combination that caused the woman's heart to resume beating again on its own. The patient was transported to the hospital in the ambulance by the members of the First Aid Company and, because of their expert training, timely ex*****on, and the Grace of God, she was able to thank them from her hospital bed as they were leaving. That patient, Mrs. Canis, and the Company would grow to become good friends. She would cardiac arrest twice more over a period of the next fifteen years before she would finally succumb to her cardiac-related problems. Each time before her last, she was left talking to the members from her hospital bed. "Big Moe," the heavy rescue truck purchased in 1955, was replaced in 1983 after 28 years of outstanding service. The new "208" was purchased by the Board of Fire Commissioners with the assistance of a $100,000.00 donation left to them for the First Aid Company by Mrs. Marion Coulter. Coulter was a Baldwin resident who, prior to her death, had required the help of the First Aid Company on different occasions. After one specific call for help in the middle of the night, she sent a donation to the Company of $1,000.00. Because of the size of the donation, the check was taken to the bank and an inquiry was made as to the availability of funds to cash the check. The bank president informed us that the check was indeed good and we could cash it. He also advised us that Mrs. Coulter had no known family and that he had been overseeing her affairs for some time and this was really what she wanted. He told us not to worry, that we were not taking advantage of this kind old woman. After her death, the Company was notified that they were named in her will. After months of waiting, her attorney delivered to the Board of Commissioners a check for $100,000.00 which were the Remains and Residuals of her estate. A stipulation was attached to the money; it had to be used to purchase equipment for the First Aid Company. So, the Board of Fire Commissioners decided to escalate the replacement of the heavy rescue track. The new heavy duty rescue truck was built by Swab Wagon Company in Pennsylvania. As the replacement for "BIG MOE," the new 208's first alarm was a Signal Ten at Ray Nor's Cabin on Sunrise Highway. It continues to serve the Community today and, along with two ambulances, responds to over 1,400 alarms each year.