Come celebrate 75 years with the
Boca Grande Fire Department
October 24, 2 to 5 p.m.
Boca Grande Fire Station,
360 E. Railroad Ave.
Above, the rules of the old pool hall in the 1944
Boca Grande Fire Department.
Bottom photos, a demonstration at The Island
School’s Fire Safety Week and one more kitty that
was rescued by the good guys (FF Alex Moore and
Lt. Lee Cooper).
paramedics on at all times.
In May of 2017 Chief Blosser and FF Jeff
Knowles rolled out a new proposal to Lee
County emergency personnel, a grid system they
had created after having numerous calls come in
for water rescues and no way to pinpoint the
exact location. The grid system proposed by the
Boca Grande Fire Department is currently being
used in departments across the state.
Because our island is very unique, our
firefighters are as well. Some days you will find
them hanging banners for a festival or setting up
folding chairs for an event at the Crowninshield
Community House. Other days you will find them
rescuing cats from trees and checking fire
extinguishers at local businesses. After Hurricane
Irma struck a glancing blow to the island they
went door to door – to every house on the
island – to make sure everyone was healthy and
accounted for. The amount of community service
they perform during times of peace and in times
of duress is never known to most people who
live here, but the scope is immense.
Of course they will always be found responding
to accidents and fighting fires, too and it isn’t until
it’s you or your home that needs saving that you
realize quite how important their job` really is.
32 GASPARILLA ISLAND September/October 2018
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