CPR Classes

Starting in mid-July of 2010 community members or any interested party may sign up for American Heart Association-based CPR or Basic First Aid classes taught by a Squad EMT.

Classes generally last 3 to 4 hours and the cost is $35. per person (group rates can be arranged). Classes will be held at 17 Laurence Parkway at the Squad building.

Persons interested in learning about or learning the skill of CPR, as well as Basic First Aid are encouraged to call 732-566-1763 and leave a message, or click on the "Schedule a Class" button below.

All class participants receive their own study book, handouts and a class completion or certification card.

Pink Ribbon Tour Comes to Town

Please join us on Saturday, October 3rd, from 9 a.m. to Noon at Friendly's Restaurant on Ferry Road.

The 'Guardians of the Ribbon', a group of firefighters, law enforcement officers and others, led by Firefighter Dave Graybill of the Glendale, Arizona Fire Department will be in town with their giant pink ribbon, pink fire truck and pink turnout gear.

The group is touring the country to generate support for research into finding the cure for breast cancer, and to honor and support those women who have survived this deadly affliction.

Move Over Law Now In Effect

On January 27 of 2009 NJ Governor Corzine signed into motor vehicle law a provision that mandates ALL drivers on any New Jersey roadway to MOVE OVER one lane AWAY FROM ANY PARKED EMERGENCY VEHICLE with its emergency lights FLASHING.

If it is unsafe for a driver to "move over" then that driver MUST SLOW DOWN below the posted limit of that section of roadway until well past the parked emergency vehicles. These vehicles include Police, Fire, EMS and Tow Trucks as well as others defined within the law.

Please help to keep US safe so that we may continue to keep YOU safe.

The full version of the law can be found by clicking on the following link:   

Early-morning Water Rescue for 'The Harbor's' Emergency Personnel

OLD BRIDGE TWP., NJ - Around 5:20 a.m. on Friday, April 3, the all-volunteer members of Laurence Harbor First Aid and Safety Squad, Laurence Harbor Fire Department, Morgan First Aid Squad and South Amboy First Aid Squad were dispatched to the bottom of the Morgan Bridge (northbound) for a report of four men in distress.

Apparently, one man had decided to try his hand at fishing the rough waters of the Raritan Bay when he became isolated by high, rough waters at the end of the jetty (Old Bridge side) where the waters of the Cheesequake Creek empty into the Raritan Bay. The distressed individual called some friends who came out to help him, only to become victims themselves.

One victim was taken north by the rough waves where his raft was destroyed by rocks along the shoreline on the Sayreville side of the bay. Three victims remained stranded on the jetty while currents carried the fourth victim south, from where his raft was destroyed. Morgan First Aid and Laurence Harbor Fire rescued the three victims, while an intense search was mounted for the missing fourth man.

Due to his knowledge of the local waters, Wayne Lawson headed the VinMar I south to search for the missing man. Upon hearing what he initially thought was a sea gull, Lawson shut down his boat and let out a whistle which was immediately answered by the now near-unclothed fisherman. Lawson commented how he could barely make out the victim's head as it bobbed with the churning of the rough waves. Lawson quickly positioned his boat and brought aboard the stricken fisherman.

According to Dave Merwin, who headed up EMS command at the Vikings Marina, "Lawson certainly saved this man's life. He had already been exposed to cold waters for close to an hour and was starting to be overcome by exhaustion after struggling against the rough waters of the bay on this morning."

A special THANK YOU needs to go out to Wayne Lawson of Sea Bright (operator of VinMar I), for his rescue of the missing man who had wound up in the cold Raritan Bay and floated over a quarter-mile south along the Laurence Harbor shoreline after getting dumped when his flimsy raft was destroyed on the rocks just north of where the Cheesequake Creek empties into the Raritan Bay.

Should anyone decide to try their luck at fishing that early in the morning on rough waters then it is best to let someone know where you are before you leave. It is also best that you assess yourself (skills, experience, physical condition et cetera) as well as the situation you are preparing to place yourself into (weather, terrain, activity et cetera) before embarking on an adventure that may well endanger your life. While we are always here to render assistance when the alarm sounds, it is YOU who is the best defense against injury, illness or even death.