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Fire Department in Need of New Building Raising Money on GoFundMe

LEHMAN TOWNSHIP — Firefighters in part of Luzerne County say they’re in desperate need of a new fire hall. The Lake Silkworth Volunteer Fire Department is...

LEHMAN TOWNSHIP -- Firefighters in part of Luzerne County say they’re in desperate need of a new fire hall.

The Lake Silkworth Volunteer Fire Department is asking the public to help them raise $200,000 through a GoFundMe Page.

For most firefighters, the danger starts once they’re on scene but first responders at Lake Silkworth say just getting out of the driveway of their station on Route 29 puts their lives at risk.

“Christmas day I was almost hit from both directions with the mini with lights on, people just don't see the lights anymore,” Bill Lathrop of the Lake Silkworth Fire Department said.

Firefighters have a $500,000 state gaming grant in their treasury to build a brand new fire hall.

However, before they can break ground they need an extra $200,000.

They are trying to raise that money through the GoFundMe page.

“This has been a long time coming, the amount of time that I've been here we've been working on this building for a long, long time,” Chief Jerry Walker said.

The new site for the fire hall is just a few hundred yards away from the current one. This time it will have a much bigger parking lot and driveway, which firefighters say is going to make a huge difference.

"If I need the engine or tanker I have to take the ambulance or mini out before I can get one of them out. It's a couple minutes,” Walker said.

Firefighters said they also need more space. Trucks at their current spot at literally bumper to bumper.

On top of that, firefighters said they are responding to more calls now than they have in the department’s 75-year history.

“Several times we've had to use them so I just hope that they build a safer place for them to pull out of and pull into,” Lake Silkworth resident Mary Ellen Morris said.

"It is a lot of money but it could happen and might have one donor out there that gives us $100 or a $1,000, any little bit helps,” Walker said.

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