Bucket brigades, drafting skills demonstrations and a vendor fair were among the fun at the third annual Firefighter Skills Competition and Family Fun Day hosted by Blairstown Hose Company No. 1.
Close to 200 attendees were drawn to Sycamore Park Saturday to watch firefighting teams from Blairstown, Allamuchy and Milford (N.J.) demonstrate their drafting skills, which typically entails removing water from a pond or lake to fight fires, but at this event was from a tank. The goal, said event organizer Brian Rosemeier, was to achieve the fastest time to knock over a traffic cone with a steady water stream via a 100-foot hose.
Rosemeier, who is a past chief and trustee for the department, as well as chairman of the drafting competition and family fun event, said the idea to create a community event sparked from a water drafting practice, eventually inviting other fire departments to join in and the public to watch.