Haviland Fire Department

History Of The Haviland Fire Department
Haviland Fire Department·Wednesday, September 26, 2018·
The  city of Haviland, Kansas was incorporated in April 3, 1906. The first  fire fighting equipment consisted of  two-wheeled carts, each carrying a  150 gallon tank with a considerable amount of hose. The tanks were  filled with water mixed with soda. Each tank had a bottle of acid under  the filler cap.  When it was desired to spray water on a fire, a lever  was operated to break the acid bottle. Mixing the acid with the soda  produced pressure which forced the water out of the tank. In 1925 the  city installed a new water system with fire hydrants strategically  located around the city. A Model T one-ton ford truck chassis was bought  and equipped with a hose bed, which was made by a local carpenter. It  carried 500 feet of hose. It was also equipped with two three-gallon  soda-acid extinguishers.
In  1947 the Kansas Inspection bureau decreed that the equipment must be  updated or the city would lose its rating for insurance purposes. A new  1947 one and a half ton Chevrolet truck was purchased, and factory  equipped with complete fire fighting equipment. This truck is still used   for parades and community functions.
Some  of the older records have been lost, but in 1921 Gene Green and Gordon  Bennett were the fire Chiefs. In 1929 L.C. Fankhouser was chief and  Gordon Bennett was assistant.  Prior to 1971 the fire chief  was Vic  Philpot. In 1971 Alvin DeGarmo was the City of Haviland Fire Chief with  David Getting as an assistance, later followed by Oscar Ebert as an  assistant. Oscar Ebert then became the Fire Chief, with Robin Rose as  his assistant. In 2017  Robin Rose took over as the Fire Chief  and  Logan Stevens  Assistant.
The city of  Haviland also houses  four Kiowa County fire trucks. The County Fire Chief is Theron McKinney.

Photo credit taken by Brandy Langley