COVINGTON, Va. – Stop 4 on the Virginia Proud Weather Tour to WSLS 10 Chief Haniewich was Alleghany County.
Jeff visited the Covington Volunteer Fire Department.
Like most departments, the need for volunteers in Covington is great.
"There's always a need for more firefighters. We like to add to our ranks with good, young firefighters to replace older guys like me and some of our others. We're looking for people that have certain characteristics that make a good member. Those would be tradition, dedication and sacrifice," said former chief Jerry Burkes, who has been with the department since 1959.
Last June, much of Alleghany County was underwater after historic flooding.
"That night, and then several days following that, with the cleanup and everything, assisting residents, it was a pretty tedious task for us to take care of," said Fire Chief Kevin Pettitt. "The water at one point, it came up past the headlights on the fire trucks, and we couldn't even traverse across roadways that normally shouldn't had water across them."
Jeff also talked with members of the Covington Rescue Squad.
The squad was organized in 1933, making it the third oldest rescue squad in Virginia, according to 2nd Lt. Greg Burton.
The squad hasn't just been around for a while, it's a top-performing squad.
"Every September we go to Virginia Beach, do training and compete in competition. We finished first in ALS last year, and we also finished first in extrication competition," said Capt. Greg Horton.
Stop 5 will take Jeff to Henry County!