This weekend was one of the busiest in years for the Vigilant Fire Company, as they responded to 22 emergency calls in a period of nine hours Sunday.
It all started Sunday morning with a call that came in about a person who broke their leg, the company said in a statement.
“Our members are some of the most dedicated people I know,” said Vigilant Chief Joshua Forst in a statement. “Time and time again they prove their dedication to the residents of this community.”
Most of the calls the company received were for falls or slips caused by the icy rain Sunday, said First Assistant Chief Joshua Charry. He also said some of the calls were for auto accidents caused by the ice, none of which were major, Charry said.
“It wasn’t specific just to Great Neck — all across the island there was so much work in such a short period of time,” Charry said. “Most of the incidents were minor to moderate – lots of bumps, bruises and scrapes.”
As New York City was also hit hard by the rain, the city made requests to ambulances in the surrounding communities to assist with the backlog of 500 calls, the company said in the release.
Vigilant did get the call for help, but declined.
“While our members were ready to help, we determined that with the volume of calls we had up to that point, we had a duty to keep all three ambulances available for our taxpayers who are always our primary concern,” Forst said according to the statement.
Some village officials openly thanked the company for their service to the area they are designated to protect.
“We are grateful for the members of the Vigilant Fire Company and their dedication to the residents of Great Neck,” said Village of Kensington Mayor Susan Lopatkin according to the statement.
Village of Great Neck Estates Mayor David Fox also said the company does a great service for the area.
“As always, the Vigilants perform an outstanding service for our community and we appreciate all that they do for us,” Fox said.
Charry said the company averages about four calls on a regular day, and nine on a day like Sunday where the weather is bad. He said a lot of people probably didn’t recognize exactly what the conditions were.
He said most people are used to seeing thick, visible ice on the road, not the black ice that was so prevalent Sunday. He said the company encourages people to not go out in bad weather unless it is absolutely necessary.
