KAILUA-KONA — Having the right equipment and tools makes any job safer and easier, and that’s especially true for Hawaii Fire Department rescue personnel on Hawaii Island.
KAILUA-KONA — Having the right equipment and tools makes any job safer and easier, and that’s especially true for Hawaii Fire Department rescue personnel on Hawaii Island.
Those brave men and women who put their lives on the line performing harrowing rescues to save lives or bring closure to loved ones will now have new ropes and other accompanying equipment, such as pulleys, thanks to a $25,000 donation to the Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation from a foundation that wished to remain anonymous.
On Wednesday, Sarah Comerford, a Kailua-Kona resident who represented the foundation, joined Frank Sayre and Laura Mallery-Sayre and members of the Fire Department to celebrate the gifting at the Kailua-Kona Fire Station.
“Her generous donation helped us, we were not going to be able to buy these. It wasn’t in the (Fire Department) budget and we (the memorial foundation) wouldn’t have been able to do this,” said Mallery-Sayre, who started the memorial foundation with her husband, Frank, after their son died in a hiking accident two decades ago at Pololu Valley.
Fire Chief Darren Rosario said in addition to making rescues safer for all involved, the rope system purchased with the donated money and accompanying anchor points, which are still needed, broadens their reach.
For example, it could come in handy during a rescue atop Mauna Kea as it can be dangerous at such elevations for a helicopter rappel rescue, he said. The system also comes in handy for subterranean rescues after someone has fallen into a crack or off a cliff.
“It means a lot for the guys standing here. It just makes their work a lot safer,” he said of the fire rescue specialists at Kailua-Kona Fire Station.
The Fire Department placed anchor point multipods, known as an Arizona Vortex, on its wish list for the upcoming Daniel R. Sayre Memorial Foundation Awards Dinner and Fundraiser slated at 4:30 p.m. Sept. 2 at The Fairmont Orchid.
The department has two multipods — one in Hilo and one in Kona — but they need four so they no longer are rigging two four-by-fours into an anchor point on one side of the system during rescues. They are hoping someone in the community will help cover the cost of the multipods, which are valued at about $5,000 each.
Tickets are on sale for the awards dinner and fundraiser. The inclusive cost of each gourmet buffet dinner is $110 for adults, $58 per child age 11 and younger. Patrons also can choose to sponsor a dinner for a firefighter and/or spouse at a cost of $100 per person.
For tickets or more information, visit www.danielsayrefoundation.org.
Email Chelsea Jensen at cjensen@westhawaiitoday.com.