CUMRU TWP., Pa. — Inside a former fire station in Cumru Township, Berks County Search and Rescue has found its new home.
“Our lease goes into effect tomorrow, July 1st, and this will be our new home for the Berks County Search and Rescue team,” said Scott Hertzog, president of Berks County Search and Rescue.
The nonprofit team was founded in 2019. Today, they help police, fire departments and emergency crews search for missing people across Berks County.
“By 2021, we were a member company of [Berks Department of Emergency Services], and now we are dispatched as ‘Station 2’ on search and rescue details,” Hertzog said.
For years, this team responded wherever they were needed. Now, they’ll have this building to call home, a place they hope will help them better serve the community.
Chief Brian Winterstein showed 69 News around the new station. That included the mobile command center they take with them whenever someone goes missing.
“This is county radio. This is 160. This is a national SAR frequency. So when we’re working with other SAR teams, this is what we use. When we’re working with fire departments, this is what we use,” Winterstein said.
For both Hertzog and Winterstein, this is just the beginning.
“Now that we have a station house, we’re expecting to see more member applications coming through, and we’re looking to see this team grow even larger as the next few months pass,” Hertzog said.