DECATUR TOWNSHIP - Two newer model fire engines and a newer pumper truck will soon have the words "Decatur Volunteer Fire Department" prominently displayed on them, and not a moment too soon.

The new equipment arrived just before a string of incidents that have kept Decatur firefighters busy.

Decatur Fire Department President Matthew Jenkins said department purchased the engine from the Upper Township Fire Department for $1,000. Upper Township firefighters threw the pumper truck in for free. Another truck came from Elizabeth Township last year.

In the last two weeks, firefighters have responded to three major incidents, and contended with an emergency of their own.

Last Wednesday, firefighters helped extricate a man who had been injured in a logging accident. Jenkins said Darrell Friend was working in a heavily wooded area off Branch Hollow Road when he was struck by a tree.

"From what I understand, he was hooking up a tree to a skidder and a tree fell and knocked him into a stump," Jenkins said.

Firefighters had to take a Stokes basket into the wooded area on a four wheeler and then carry it out by hand with Friend in it. The injured man was transported by Life Flight helicopter to St. Mary's Medical Center in Huntington, W.Va., where he remains in critical condition, according to hospital spokesman Dan Londeree.

Last Thursday, a coal truck overturned on State Route 93. Firefighters spent four to six hours on the scene directing traffic and assisting with cleanup. The driver, Gary W. Martin, who hauls for Conley trucking of Wheelersburg, suffered minor injuries in the crash.

Monday morning fire destroyed the Roger Hensley residence on Waterloo-Mt. Vernon Road. No one was in the house at the time of the fire, but the older model mobile home was a total loss, Jenkins said. It is believed the fire was caused by a wood/coal burner that was used to heat the house.

Over the weekend, firefighters battled their own problem: sub-zero temperatures caused water pipes at the fire station to freeze. While trying to thaw the pipes, a main line burst and had to be replaced. Township trustees Garold Cox, Patty Cox and Pete McFann helped dig out the old line and install the new one.

"Out here it runs in streaks," Jenkins said. "We'll get a dozen calls and then go for months and not have a thing."