The Pine Ridge Fire Department held its 2nd Annual Open House and BBQ fund raiser on Saturday, November 14th.

The turnout was better than expected and the department enjoyed hosting the families from throughout our response area. The big hit with the children were the two jump castles, however they were also treated to fire truck and station tours, rapid equipment dress competition and fire prevention displays.

The Berkeley County Sheriff's Office conducted a K-9 demonstration in which Deputy Chief Thompson dressed up as the "bad guy" and took several bites from the good guys. The crowds that attended dined on bbq plates with all the fixins.

Gerald Mishoe from the Charleston Fire Department Peer Support group showed off his Camaro dragster car dedicated to the memory of the Charleston 9 firefighters, two of which Captain Brandon Thompson and Captain Michael French were members of the Pine Ridge Fire Department.

Chief Ben Waring would like to thank all the members of the fire department and the ladies' auxiliary for their hard work before, during and after the event. It's important that the department lets the community know that they are protected by dedicated men and women who volunteer their time for others.

The Pine Ridge Fire Department is holding it's 2nd Annual Open House and BBQ, Saturday, November 14th, 2009 form 10 am - 4 pm.

Come out and support your fire department! Tour the station, check out the trucks, view firefighter demonstrations, win raffles, and jump in jump castles (for the kids, folks).

Best of all, buy yourself a delicious BBQ plate that includes: BBQ, hash & rice, slaw, bread, and a dessert!

Click here to print a copy of our flyer. We hope to see you there!

The Pine Ridge Fire Department Christmas Party and Award Ceremony will be held on December 5th beginning at 6pm. The awards ceremony and party will be held at the Summerville Elks Lodge and entry is by invitation.

It will begin at 6pm, with happy hour from 6pm-7pm, followed by dinner and awards ceremony. The dinner will be catered by Mr. Frank Thompson and will feature prime rib. After the award ceremony, there will be dancing and karaoke.

Door prizes and raffles will be given throughout the evening. The Summerville Elks Lodge is located off of US Hwy. 78 near the Westvaco Lumber mill.

Jake Michael Ryan was born

November 1st, 2009 at 05:04 (a.m).

He came into this world

weighing 10 lbs. 7 oz.

and was 22 inches long!

We welcome a future firefighter to the family!

On October 10th, the Pine Ridge Fire Department participated in the St. Stephen's Oktoberfest. This year was the first ever "Firefighter Games". Teams included St. Stephens FD (Co.15) Macedonia FD (Co.18) Cordesville FD (Co.22) Moncks Corner Rural (Co.7) Eadytown Metro (Co.13) North Charleston Fire Department's Explorer Post, Lake Moultrie FD (Co.20) and the local favorites, Pine Ridge FD (Co.2). Members met at the fire station around 9 am to caravan the thirty minute drive to the north end of the county. This was a great outing in which the families enjoyed it just as much as the firefighters. The following members/team placed in the different events. Pine Ridge FD took first place in four out of five events.

• Hose Deployment- 1st place Chief Waring, FF. Pool, Lt. Geroulis, Capt. Gregory
• Water Bucket Brigade- 1st place Lt. Geroulis, FF. Mizzell, Eng.. Driscoll, FF. Pool
• Tug of War- 1st place Lt. Brewington, Engineer Neiderhiser, FF. Gant, FF. Bragg, FF. Mizzell
• Firefighter obstacle course- 1st place individual time Lt. Geroulis
• 3rd place individual time FF. Driscoll
• 4th place individual time FF. Pool

The department enjoyed the entire experience and we look forward to returning next year.

The Pine Ridge Fire Department was the recipient of a new 2009 Polaris Ranger 6x6 utility vehicle. The utility vehicle was won through a grant offered by the US Tobacco Corporation.

With the help of several members, Chief Thompson submitted the grant package competing against different law enforcement, fire and emergency services units throughout the state. The department was notified in July that we had won the utility vehicle. The vehicle was delivered in September.

A slide in pump unit with a stokes basket has been ordered for the unit and will be installed shortly. The new unit is available for brush fires, land searches and wrecks involving four wheelers.

The unit is on a trailer and responds from the Myers Road station. The slide in pump has a 90 gallon with foam and a booster reel. The unit can carry a patient in full c-spine placed inside the stokes basket.

The Pine Ridge Fire Department placed “Rescue 28” into service during the first of October.

The rescue truck was purchased from a department in Indiana. The rescue truck enhances the equipment available for motor vehicle accidents and will also serve as a hazardous materials support unit.

The truck is manufactured by S&S Fire Apparatus and is on a Ford diesel chassis. There is seating for two members in the cab and four additional members in the walk-in box. The truck has a set of Amkus rescue tools on board as well as hazardous materials equipment.

The truck is second due for motor vehicle collisions and third due for residential structure fires. Rescue 28 responds from the Myers Road station.

On August 24th, the fire department held its third quarter dinner. The turn out by department members and their families was excellent. Chief Waring played chef, cooking up a great meal of greek chicken.

The firefighter of the quarter for the 3rd quarter was awarded to Kevin Pool. Kevin has been on the department for a year and has recently graduated the rookie school for the Charleston Fire Department. Upon graduation Kevin was station at Engine 12 in West Ashley.

The fourth quarter award went to Brad Gantt. Brad not only responds to calls for the fire department, but handles routine vehicle maintenance on PRFD apparatus.

It was great to have the families who support our firefighters attend and enjoy some quality time and great food.

On May 18th, 2009, the Pine Ridge Fire Department was awarded 19,000.00 from the Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company. The award comes from a grant written by Deputy Chief Thompson, to purchase new fire hose.

The grant award allowed the fire department to replace all the hose carried on each apparatus and also have the same amount in reserve. This also enabled the department to color code each trucks hose. We were also able to purchase additional nozzles and foam tubes for the trucks.

The department would like to thank William Mills of Wachovia Securities in Charleston, SC who sponsored Pine Ridge Fire Department for the grant. Also contributing to our success was Ms. Sandra Hensley of the Fireman’s Fund, who evaluated Pine Ridge Fire Department for the grant, Senator Jim DeMint and Senator Lindsey Graham’s office, Senator Paul Campbell and Congressman Henry Brown, all who wrote letters of support for the grant.

The hose and nozzles were purchase and several sections have seen their first fires already.

A check presentation took place at the Myers Road station. Retired Fire Chief Ricky Waring, the father of Pine Ridge Fire Department Chief Ben Waring cooked prime rib as the department welcomed special guest for the presentation.

The Pine Ridge Fire Department would like to congratulate Engineer Nick Geroulis and his wife April on the birth of their son Trent Nicholas Geroulis.

Trent was born on Wednesday, February 25th at 8:35 am. Trent weighed 7lbs 2 oz. and was 19" long. Mom and baby are doing fine and will be coming home on Friday.

We welcome a future firefighter to the family!

The Pine Ridge Fire Department is pleased to announce the graduation of Spencer Stevens from the South Carolina Fire Academy's Recruit School.

The school is seven weeks long and allows for a firefighter to enter with no training and leave with a national certification of NFPA Firefighter 2. The programs certifies each recruit in medical first responder, auto extrication, interior firefighting, incident command and many more skills.

Spencer has been a member of the Pine Ridge Fire Department for less than a year. He is a resident of Goose Creek, and a graduate of Stratford High School. Spencer was highly motivated during his seven week stay and stayed in the top 5 percent of his class in academics. He plans on pursuing a career in firefighting. Great job Spencer!

Mutual Aid Awards

· Whitesville Rural Fire Dept.
· C&B Fire Dept.
· Lebanon Rural Fire Dept.
· Caromi FD
· Berkeley Co. Central Dispatch

Community Service Awards

· Kathrine Rend- Website Development

Kathrine spends countless hours of her time maintaining our department's website. The website, considered one of the best in the state, stays up to date cataloging the department's events, calls and personnel. Kathrine served as a board member on the fire department and is a wife of a firefighter. Her husband Dominic is a firefighter at the Naval Weapon Station in Goose Creek, SC. Thank you Kathrine for all of your hard work.

· Dennis Walczuk- Equipping our Heroes

Dennis started a nonprofit foundation shortly after the Sofa Super Store fire in which the Pine Ridge Fire Department loss two members. Dennis contacted the department and was instrumental in obtaining grant money to purchase 18 hand held radios for the fire department. After being awarded the grant, all members now responding on apparatus have a radio communicate on the fireground.

· Senator Paul Campbell

Senator Campbell represents the 44th district of South Carolina. Senator Campbell sponsored a grant written by Deputy Chief Thompson to obtain a command vehicle for the fire department. The vehicle "Battalion 2" was placed into service and allows a duty officer to respond to each call and manage the shift.

The following boards of directors were present at the banquet and were given an appreciation award:

Wendell Estes- Chairman
Sherry Edgin-Secretary
Dave Hill- member

Service Awards

25 years of service- Captain Jardin Hedman
5 years of service- Engineer Matthew Schneider
5 years of service- Engineer Steven Brice-Nash

Top Call Runners

1st Place Engineer Joe Etling 426 calls for the year
2nd Place Captain Ryan Hall 394 calls for the year
3rd Place Firefighter Robert Gray 354 calls for the year

Rookie of the Year Award - Firefighter Troy Driscoll

Firefighter of the Year Award - Engineer Jake Steinert

Officer of the Year - Captain Ryan Hall

Achievement Award - Deputy Chief Jeffery Thompson

Chief's Award - Engineer Steven Brice-Nash

The department presented Chief Waring a framed picture of the "new" Cooper River Bridge. Chief Waring has long ties to the City of Charleston, being a member of the Charleston Fire Department for 11 years. Captain Ryan and Captain Hall, the department's station captains represented the fire department in presenting the picture

Lastly, the men and women of the fire department wishes to thank Mr. Frank Thompson and all of the members of the Summerville Elk's Lodge who were gracious in catering the meal. An excellent meal of prime rib with the fixin's was served to each guest.

We also wish to thank the following special guest and vendors:

Deputy Chief Franklin Finley of the Charleston Fire Department
Chief Richard G. Waring III (ret) Summerville Fire Department
Bob Mixter, Director of the Berkeley Co. Emergency Medical Service
Carl Thompson Sr, Thompson Entertainment, who provided the DJ services
Wally Elliot, Wally's Fire Equipment for door prizes
Ronald Humphreys, MES Fire Equipment for door prizes
William Gray, Slagle's Fire Equipment for door prizes

The Pine Ridge Fire Department is placing into service a new command vehicle. The radio designation for this vehicle will be "Battalion 2". The vehicle will be manned 24 hours by an officer of the fire department. That officer is responsible for incidents, events and any situations that arise on his tour of duty.

The vehicle is a 2008 Ford F-250 which was purchased by grants funds secured by Sen. Paul Campbell who represents a large portion of the fire district. Deputy Chief Thompson submitted a grant through the South Carolina Competitive Grant program and the grant was sponsored by Sen. Campbell.

The vehicle carries as set of rescue cutters and spreaders, a scba, additional communication equipment, medical equipment and an aed. The rear pull out tray is designed for command center location with vhf mobile radios.

A special thanks go out to Capt. Ryan and Engineer Axson for doing the wiring on the lights in house.

Six members of the fire department tested for engineer. The rank of engineer is given to a member of the fire department that has completed all requirements to become an apparatus operator. Congratulations to the following members in obtaining the rank of engineer. Greg Neiderhiser, Jake Steinert, Daniel Chavous, TJ Axson and Nick Geroulis.

The exam consisted of five practical station, judged by an officer of the department. Other members of the department served as assistants and were given orders and instruction by the candidate. Station # 1 was drafting and was graded by Chief Waring. Station # 2 was tanker operations, graded by Captain Hall. Station # 3 was auto extrication and rescue tools graded by Captain Ryan. Station # 5 was aerial apparatus graded by Deputy Chief Thompson, and the final station was ems operations and incident commanded graded by Lt. Gregory NREMT-P. This was the most stringent test ever given to engineers and it included a written test, apparatus/equipment walk around and a driving portion. All participants did a great job and definitely showed their skills.

Chief Benjamin Waring (201) the chief of the department married Misty Hensley on 10-18-08 at the Summerville Presbyterian Church.

The service was at 4:00 PM followed by a great reception held at "The Bunker". Chief Waring and his new bride left the following morning for the Dominican Republic.

Anyone who knows the chief, knows he is incredibly scared of flying. The pictures are from the reception and Chief Waring visiting TSA security.

The couple will return to Charleston on Friday. All the members of the fire department wish them a wonderful marriage.

Congratulations to Captain Ryan and Suzanne Hall and Engineer Matt and Erin Schneider on the birth of each families' first child.

Cooper Harrison Schneider, born July 29th at 5:57 p.m. Cooper weighed 9 lbs. and was 21" long. Both mother and baby boy are healthy and doing well.

Braeden Louis Hall, born on October 3rd, at 8:14 p.m. Braeden weighed 7 lbs. 8 oz. and was 19 1/4" long. Both mother and the baby boy are healthy and doing well.

The Pine Ridge Fire Department Christmas Party and Award Ceremony will be held on December 6th beginning at 6pm. (click here for calendar) The awards ceremony and party will be held at the Summerville Elks lodge and entry is by invitation.

It will begin at 6pm, with happy hour from 6pm-7pm, followed by dinner and awards ceremony. The dinner will be catered by Mr. Frank Thompson, and will feature prime rib. After the award ceremony, there will be dancing and karaoke. Door prizes and raffles will be given out during the event.

The Elks lodge is located off of Hwy. 78 near the Westvaco Lumber mill.

The department is growing! We welcome the following new probational members to the fire department. Each member must participate in a 90 day probational period, before achieving the rank of firefighter.

Kevin Pool, Kevin is a local businessman, who specializes in the construction industry. Kevin has no prior experience and is currently attending the 1152 course being held at Summerville Fire Department.

Brad Gantt, Brad is a heavy equipment mechanic and has prior experience with the City of North Charleston Fire Department. Brad has already shown to be an asset with fleet maintenance.

Jeff Wilson, Jeff is a police officer with the City of North Charleston. Jeff's prior experience is assistant chief with Ridgeville Fire Department and firefighter with St. George Fire Department.

James Wilson, James is the son of Jeff Wilson. He joins the department with no experience and is currently in the 1152 class at Summerville Fire Department.

Spencer Stevens, is a Stratford High School graduate. He is leaving on October 22nd for the 7 week recruit school at the South Carolina Fire Academy. He does not have prior fire service experience.

Brian Blair, Brian has for the past several years brought food up to the station along with his daughter's girl scout unit to thank the firemen. This year he brought food and left with an application. Brian is scheduled for the next 1152 class.

Shawn Roche, Shawn is a damage controlman in the US Navy stationed at the weapons station in Goose Creek. Shawn has prior experience in the military. He is originally from Michigan.

Brian Dispenza, Brian joined the fire department with experience, he is currently on the Ashley River Fire Department as well.

Members of the Pine Ridge Fire Department brought Sparky and the smoke trailer to Sangaree Elementary School on October 7th and 8th and Devon Forest Elementary on October 9th and 10th.

In total, members taught 800 kindergartners and 1st graders the dangers of matches and lighters, how to get out and stay out and stop, drop, and roll.

The department also participated in the Summerville/Old Fort Fire Department's fire prevention display and the Goose Creek Fire Department display.

Thank you to the following members who participated in fire prevention: Chief Waring, Deputy Chief Thompson, Engineer Brice-Nash, Engineer Miles, Firefighters' Gray, Chavous, Dispenza, James Wilson, Pippin, Driscoll, Steinert, Millen and Stevens.

Members of the Pine Ridge Fire Department attended the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation Memorial Weekend in Emmitsburg, Maryland. The weekend memorial was held on October 3rd-5th.

Chief Waring, Deputy Chief Thompson, Capt. Ryan, Capt. Hedman,Lt. Gregory, Engineer Miles, and Firefighters' TJ Axson and Millen attended the services.

Two of Pine Ridge's fallen Capt. Brandon Thompson and Capt. Michael French were honored at the service. They both died in the line of duty while working with the Charleston Fire Department.

The families of the both men received a flag flown over the capital and a badge in their honor.

Also, an article on firehouse.com:

Brothers Lost: Two Men Share NFFF Memorial Weekend
A retired fire chief from Massachusetts and a deputy chief in South Carolina may live thousands of miles apart, but they share a bond.
To view the entire article go to http://cms.firehouse.com/content/article/article.jsp?sectionId=46&id=61206

The Pine Ridge Fire Department applied and was award a 21,500.00 grant from the State of South Carolina. The grant was the VSAFE program to assist volunteer fire departments, and was administered through the South Carolina Fire Marshal's Office.

Deputy Chief Thompson wrote the grant and the department was able to purchase 10 complete head-to-toe sets of turnout gear from Slagle's Fire Equipment in Columbia, South Carolina. The grant is extremely useful in replacing old and torn turnout gear..

When the alarm tones sound at the Pine Ridge Fire Department, firefighters scramble for their protective gear and get ready for action.

John Lewis has no trouble finding his equipment: His boots are the only pair with an artificial leg sticking out of the top.

Read more...

The Pine Ridge Fire Department participated in the Devon Forest Elementary School Carnival. Members of the department staffed Engine 24, Engine 23, Squad 28 and Car 202. Personnel secured a landing zone for the incoming Meducare helicopter. Once the helicopter landed, members gave tours of the department's apparatus. The turnout to the carnival was great and the helicopter and fire trucks were a popular destination for the adults and children.

While attending the Coastal Crisis Chaplaincy's 17th Annual Banquet, Chief Waring and Deputy Chief Thompson met with Rep. Henry Brown. Rep. Brown represents the 1st Congressional District which covers Berkeley County. The chief's made mention of the FEMA Fire Act grant in which Rep. Brown's support is key. The dinner honored the nine firefighters and four police officers killed in the line of duty in 2007.

The Pine Ridge Fire Department's Ladies Auxiliary program received a matching grant donation for $2000.00 from the Goose Creek Wal-Mart. The donation matched several fund raisers that the ladies have completed. Lt. Robert Gregory, Engineer Trevor "Match" Miles and Mrs. Brandy Thompson were on hand to receive the donation.

The Pine Ridge Fire Department held their annual award ceremony on December the 8th, at the Summerville Elks Lodge. Chief Ben Waring presided over the award ceremony. A wonderful dinner featuring Mr. Frank's prime rib was served to the guest by volunteers from the Elks Lodge.

Mr. Frank Thompson, father of Capt. Brandon Thompson and Deputy Chief Jeffery Thompson catered the dinner. He and his wife Stephanie were presented with a picture of Brandon and a plaque in appreciation.

The following members were awarded for 2007 top call runners:
Firefighter Robert Gray 1st place
Deputy Chief Jeffery Thompson 2nd place

Service Awards:
Engineer Michael Hunt 5 years
Engineer Robert Gregory 5 years
Engineer John Oatis 5 years
Chief Benjamin Waring 10 years

Achievement Awards:
Engineer Jon Ryan, Engineer Ryan Hall, Engineer Joseph Etling

Chief's Award:
Deputy Chief Jeffery Thompson

Rookie Firefighter of the Year:
Firefighter Nick Geroulis

Firefighter of the Year:
Engineer Trevor Miles

Officer of the Year:
Deputy Chief Jeffery Thompson

A special appreciation award was given to Chief Waring by all the members of the fire department for his dedication and leadership.

Awards were given to several people who assisted the fire department during the week of June the 18th. They were Keith Smith, Moncks Corner Rural FD, Scott Lee, Moncks Corner Rural FD, Scott Grooms, Eadytown Metro FD, Tim Stephenson, Whitesville Rural FD, Jim Woods, South Carolina Highway Patrol, Chief Waring, Summerville FD, and Nicky Sweatman, Lebanon Rural FD of Berkeley Co.

Mutual aid awards were given to the surrounding departments who have assisted PRFD during the year, they include, Whitesville, Caromi, C&B, Long Ridge, and Lebanon.

The turnout was great and the Ladies Auxiliary were given an award for their hard work decorating the banquet room and collecting the door prizes. Thank you for the hard work.

Firefighter Jake Steinert successfully completed the seven week recruit school at the South Carolina Fire Academy, in Columbia.

Firefighter Steinert is the second member of the fire department to attend the program. Upon his graduation he completed the OSHA firefighter, basic auto extrication, flammable and liquid gas firefighting, Firefighter 1 and 2 and several other classes.

Chief Waring, Deputy Chief Thompson, Engineer Miles and Firefighter TJ Axson attended the graduation along with Jake's parents.

Great job Jake!

The Pine Ridge Fire Department held its annual open house Saturday, November the 10th at the Myers Road station. Members of the fire department did an outstanding job preparing the station for the open house.

The ladies auxiliary held a BBQ fund raiser and served meals. The fund raiser was a huge success.

Thanks to Wal-Mart of Goose Creek and Winningham's of Lebanon for their gracious donations. Two bicycles were raffled off and a jump castle and fire truck slide was set up for the children's enjoyment.

Sparky made an appearance as well. The turn out was great from the community. Thanks again to all the members and ladies auxiliary.

Hannah Rochelle Gregory, daughter of Randall & Lacey Gregory was born on 11-07-2007 at Trident Medical. Congratulation to Firefighter Gregory and wife on the new addition to their family.

Click here to read article from News Channel 4.

Click here to watch the e-video.

After three very active years of service with the Pine Ridge Fire Department, Lieutenant Chris Day has to call it quits.

Chris who recently retired from the US Navy as a senior chief petty officer is moving to Florida to be closer to family and start a career working for a power company. Chris was one of the most active responders in the fire department and could be counted on for the calls in the early hours of the day.

Chris's wife Kim was instrumental in starting the ladies auxiliary for the fire department and was dedicated to assisting the firemen during any task.

The Day's are also expecting an additional child to add to the family. Chris, Kim and Abbey will be missed.

Thanks for the hard work LT and good luck!

After the tragic loss of Brandon, Michael, and 7 other firefighters at the Sofa Super Store fire, his goal has finally been realized.

Wally Elliott of Wally's Fire Equipment, located in Mullins, South Carolina and the Bullard Corporation wanted to find a way to honor the Charleston 9, but weren't sure how. A report in Firehouse magazine shed light on the camera fund started in Brandon and Michael's name.

The Bullard Corporation donated two cameras, one to Pine Ridge Fire Department and the other to the City of Charleston Fire Department. The cameras were hand-built by each employee of the Bullard Corporation and delivered to the fire departments by Brad Harvey, Vice President of Camera Sales and Wally Elliott.

A presentation took place at the fire station followed with a dinner provided by the Ladies Auxiliary. The camera was first presented to the both families and then in turn presented to Chief Waring.

PRFD gained a life saving tool not only through his efforts but his memory. He and Michael would be honored knowing that the men they served with can now go into burning structures with a tool that bears their names — and save lives.

Members of the Pine Ridge Fire Department attended the South Carolina Firemen's Association annual conference in Myrtle Beach. Chief Waring, Deputy Chief Thompson, Captain Hedman, Engineer Ryan Hall, Engineer John Oatis, Engineer "Opie" Brewington, Firefighter Goldsmith, Firefighter Moravek, Firefighter Geroulis and Firefighter O'Quinn attended portions of the conference.

A special tribute to the Charleston 9 was the theme of the conference. Members observed rescue competitions, took safety classes and viewed new fire apparatus and equipment while at the show.

The Bullard thermal imaging camera that was donated to the Pine Ridge Fire Department was also on display at the Wally's Fire Equipment booth.