My Dad was a long time member of the Susquehanna Hose Co., the volunteer fire company in Havre de Grace. He left the house for fire calls at all hours of the day and night. We were trained from an early age to never talk when dispatchers were talking on the “monitor” (scanner), even if the call was for another company. Car accidents and fires were the subjects dinner table conversation. Once I was married, I had Steve trained to donate to the Perryville Fire Company whenever they solicited donations. I guess being the child of a firefighter is in my blood.

This morning as I read an account of a fire last week in Perryville, I was reminded of something my Dad said when Steve and I were house hunting in 1991-1992. Up until that point, I had spent my whole life in Havre de Grace and I considered moving to Perryville, one whole town to the east across the Susquehanna River, a move to a foreign locale. As we were weighing our options, my Dad, who didn’t often offer much unsolicited advice, said that he was glad that we would still be close enough to Havre de Grace for the SHCO to respond in an emergency.

From the story of last week’s fire, I’m glad Susquehanna Hose Co. still makes good time across that bridge.

There’s one other bit of fire-related advice that Dad gave me–never put anything near the front of your clothes dryer. I think of him often when I walk into our laundry room and glance to make sure that space is clear.