Fire/Rescue
Boat Fund

The Great Sacandaga Lake is rapidly growing in popularity with many tourists visiting from all over the state and beyond. In 2025 alone, lake residents and visitors required multiple emergency service responses. These responses ranged in severity from distressed boaters and trauma-related calls to drownings. Broadalbin-Kennyetto Fire Company is one of five volunteer fire companies on the lake that remain committed and postured to answer these critical situations as they arise. Unfortunately, this group of emergency response professionals faces a serious limitation. Only one volunteer company on the lake has a watercraft vessel, and they are located in an adjacent county.

Because of this, we are respectfully requesting donations to help fund a Fire/Rescue Boat.

We have been diligently pursuing a solution to this existential need by identifying a boat that can be purchased and docked on the Broadalbin side of the lake. Currently the Edinburg Volunteer Fire Company and the Tri-County Water Rescue Team (Futon, Montgomery and Schoharie Counties) are called with a mutual aid plan. When this plan is enacted, response times to lake emergencies dramatically increases the risk to the five mile wide, seven mile long, heavily-populated area of the lake. In addition, the well-known Sand Island and Scout Island lie within our company's response area. These islands specifically attract thousands of boaters and tourists every year. Similarly, the Broadalbin-Kennyetto Fire Company is also responsible for thousands of seasonal and permanent residents living along the shorelines of the lake. Equally important is the future needs of the area.

A local campground is a proposed project, adding potentially hundreds of campsites that would depend on assets like a fire boat with access to water supply. Having the ability to pump directly from the Great Sacandaga Lake could be the difference in the effective mitigation of property loss and loss of life.

An investment of approximately $80,000 will purchase a vessel. Although multiple public and private grant submissions have been made, none have been awarded. Broadalbin-Kennyetto Fire Company is prepared with a donated dock slip, and crew that can operate this resource. We simply need to find partners who are willing to provide the community with this valuable resource. We would be very grateful for your consideration to help fund this fire/rescue boat.