Chief Praises Residents' Response to Storm

On Nov. 5 Hellertown Police Chief Robert Shupp thanked members of the public for remaining calm during the recent power outage that lasted for up to a week for some residents.

In a situation that was extremely trying for many local families, calm and order prevailed, Hellertown Police Chief Robert Shupp told Borough Council Nov. 5. Shupp praised residents for reacting stoically in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy, whose high winds left much of the borough in the dark for days. "This was hard," he said. "I would like to thank the public, because everybody really took this in stride." "I don't think we had one call that was involving an argument or a fight at a gas station or something like that," he added. "It was nice to see that nobody acted out or anything like that." Shupp credited the fact that Dewey Fire Co. Social Hall was opened as a heated comfort station for residents for helping improve the situation…

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Fire Chief Offers Quarterly Report

Hellertown Fire Chief Rick Delmore of Dewey Fire Co. told borough council Oct. 1 that the number of calls the company has so far responded to in 2012 is lower than it was at the same time last year.

Fire calls so far this year are down when compared year-over-year with the same point in 2011, but that's not a surprise, Hellertown Fire Chief Rick Delmore of Dewey Fire Co. No. 1 told borough council Oct. 1. Delmore said Dewey volunteers had responded to 202 calls as of Sept. 30, whereas last year they'd responded to 275 calls by the end of September. Sixty of those calls, however, were related to flooding caused by the remnants of Hurricane Irene, which swept through the Saucon Valley in late August 2011. Earlier this year, Delmore told council that Irene and the October snowstorm that darkened Hellertown for days last year helped to make 2011 'a very unusual year.' As part of his quarterly report to council, Delmore announced that …

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Fire Chief Calls 2011 'A Very Unusual Year'

Dewey Fire Co. Chief Rick Delmore delivered his 2011 annual report to Hellertown Borough Council on April 16. In it he cited two unusual storms that affected the Saucon Valley--and dramatically increased the department's call volume.

A pair of severe storms that seriously affected the Saucon Valley helped make 2011 "a very unsusual year" for Dewey Fire Company No. 1, Fire Chief Rick Delmore told Hellertown Borough Council April 16. The first storm in what proved to be a meteorological double whammy struck in late August, when the remnants of Hurricane Irene moved across the area. As a result of flooded basements and roadways, Dewey saw "a huge increase in calls," Delmore said. The deluge also prompted the company to upgrade its equipment by purchasing a new pump, which will help empty basements of flood water more quickly in the future. The second unusual storm struck the Hellertown area exactly two months after Irene did, on Oct. 29, 2011. And instead of crippling …

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Profiles in Volunteerism

Profiles in Volunteerism: Fire Chief Rick Delmore

Rick Delmore is a volunteer firefighter and fire chief with Dewey Fire Company No. 1 in Hellertown.

Name: Rick Delmore Age: 40 Lives in: Hellertown Family: Wife, 3 children Job: Manager at a hardware store, Dewey Fire Company No. 1 Fire Chief Fire company: Dewey Fire Company Training so far: Firefighter 1, Vehicle Rescue, Engine, Truck, Hazmat, Instructor, etc. What's being a firefighter like? “It’s very rewarding. You get to help people. You get an adrenaline rush. If you have a problem, you get a way to fix it.” How do your loved ones feel about you putting your life in danger? “They support it, but they worry.” Tell us a story you'll never forget about your firefighting experience. “Every call is memorable. Every call is something different. Calls dealing with kids…those are tough. Those are really the only calls that bother me.” What…

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Borough Council Approves Purchase of New Fire Truck

Approval for Dewey Fire Company to purchase a new Pierce truck was unanimous at Hellertown Borough Council's Oct. 17 meeting.

A new Pierce fire truck equipped with state-of-the-art safety features will help make Dewey Fire Company a more efficient organization, Fire Chief Rick Delmore told Hellertown Borough Council during a presentation Oct. 17. Delmore said the fire truck--which is considered a higher-end vehicle--is also needed by Dewey, which had already responded to 274 calls this year, as of Oct. 17. Delmore acknowledged that a significant number of those calls were related to Hurricane Irene, which struck the Saucon Valley in late August. The hurricane's heavy rains flooded basements and streets in Hellertown, and the volunteers from Dewey responded to the emergency by helping to pump water out of homes and by rescuing stranded residents. However, Delmore …

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Council VP: 'We Became an Island Again' During Irene

At council's Sept. 19 meeting, Hellertown Borough Council Vice President John Bate observed that most of the major roads in and out of the borough were closed due to flooding in the wake of Hurricane Irene.

At Hellertown Borough Council's Sept. 19 meeting, Dewey Fire Co. Chief Rick Delmore delivered a report on the fire department's response during and after Hurricane Irene. The report highlighted the tremendous efforts of the company's volunteers, who responded to 60 storm-related incidents between Saturday, Aug. 27 and Monday, Aug. 29. However, it also highlighted some of the challenges caused by the significant flash flooding that temporarily restricted access to Hellertown via most major routes. At one point all of the major roads across the Saucon Creek--which flows along the west side of the borough--were closed due to flooding, which meant that Lower Saucon Township police could not effectively respond to calls in the eastern half of …

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Hellertown Presents Grant Applications to Gaming Authority

The borough's engineer and emergency personnel gave in-depth explanations of items contained in the 2011 restricted gaming grant applications at an authority meeting Aug. 22.

Hellertown borough officials presented their applications for the 2011 round of restricted gaming grants before the Northampton County Gaming Revenue and Economic Redevelopment Authority Aug. 22. As with all grant application presenters, Hellertown was given eight minutes to discuss each of its applications, with a seven minute time limit for follow up questions from authority members. Bryan Smith, an engineer with Barry Isett & Associates, Inc., presented the authority with the borough’s application for stamped crosswalks and traffic calming measures at Main Street and Cherry Lane. Smith told the authority that there have been some pedestrian accidents in the borough, including some fatal accidents. In addition, he said that approximately…

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