The Chaffee-Sardinia Volunteer Fire Company is the primary provider of fire, rescue and emergency medical services within the Town of Sardinia, a 50.3 square mile rural agricultural community located in the southeast corner of Erie County, New York. We are the largest single fire protection district in Erie County. On the north it is bounded by the towns of Holland and Colden, on the west by the town of Concord, on the east by Wyoming County, and on the south by Cattaraugus County. Some principal features of the town include two main highways, State Route 16, which runs north to south on the east side of the town, and State Route 39, which runs east to west, along the south edge of the town. Also running east to west along the southern border of the township is the Cattaraugus Creek, which is very popular for fishing and recreation. Located along the eastern edge of the town is the Norfolk and Southern Railroad. This line is a main route from Buffalo to Pennsylvania. In addition to being rural, the town is also very hilly. Located near the center of the town is the highest point in Erie County, 1945 feet above sea level. The town is also home to over 1,500 acres of Erie County Forestry, 326.6 acres of Erie County parkland, and a 500 acre Girl Scout camp. Due to the large size of the town, the fire company maintains three separate fire stations, all of which house emergency equipment.

The Town of Sardinia has a population (census 2000) of 2,692 people, with a population density of 53 per square mile, and an estimated average home value of $88,600. As of 2000, the estimated number of housing units in our town was placed at 1,017. Since 2001, our town has experienced a substantial increase in housing, with 58 new residential homes (at a total cost of $7,803,000.00) and 16 commercial structures (at a total cost of $2,655,000.00) being built. This rapid growth is expected to continue, with plans being finalized for a large industrial park, situated on the southeast corner of our town, in addition to a new sub-division on the south edge of town that will eventually contain upwards of 200 residential homes. Water for structural and vegetation fires is provided by drafting from 18 dry-hydrants (installed by members of our company annually) and various ponds and streams for tanker- relay operations. Our ISO rating for the town is at a nine, but various portions are rated at a ten.

Besides daily fire, rescue, and ALS EMS services, our forty-eight active member, three-station volunteer fire company is the sole provider of several other emergency services to our community. These services include search and rescue, including a snowmobile and all-terrain vehicle response team; a rope-rescue team, vehicle extrication, traffic control during emergency situations; and initial response to hazardous materials incidents. In addition, we routinely provide temporary shelter in our stations to civilians during times of emergency. The Chaffee-Sardinia Volunteer Fire Company routinely provides all of the above services to eleven neighboring fire companies on a mutual aid basis. We automatically respond to five of these companies through a pre-arranged mutual aid agreement. The Chaffee-Sardinia Volunteer Fire Company established a Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) in 1998, and we provide this service to eight neighboring companies, three of which are on an automatic mutual aid basis.

Financially, 68% of our annual operating budget comes from town taxes, with 15% from our fund drives, 7% from donations, and 10% from our annual carnival.