By John Tredrea, Special Writer
The voters have spoken. As a result, Pennington Borough will get a new fire siren.
In a special public election held Tuesday on whether to buy and install a new emergency siren in Pennington, at a cost not to exceed $15,000, six yes votes were cast and zero no votes were cast.
The new siren will replace an old, irreparable one.
The election was held from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. during the regular monthly meeting of the Pennington Board of Fire Commissioners.
The decision authorizes the Pennington Borough fire board to purchase the siren next year.
"We’ll get the siren up and running as early in 2015 as we can," said fire commission Chairman Mark Blackwell.
The siren will be installed on an existing cell phone tower, next to the firehouse at 120 Broemel Place.
The Pennington fire district includes all of Pennington Borough. Hopewell Borough and Hopewell Township also are fire districts.
Both the Pennington Borough and the Hopewell Borough fire departments include about one-third of Hopewell Township in their legally designated service areas.
Both boroughs are less than 1-square mile in size and both are surrounded by Hopewell Township, which is 58 square miles in size.
The only fire company in the township is Union Fire Company and Rescue Squad, based on Route 29 in Titusville at the western edge of the township.
Members of the Pennington fire commission say the new siren is needed to help ensure that volunteers are aware an alarm has been sounded, to warn motorists, cyclists and pedestrians that emergency service vehicles will be on the road shortly and to alert those who have called in the alarm that help is on the way.
