VIDEO: Pumped Up Firefighters At Waterford Beach

Firefighters from around New England went back almost two centuries Saturday, as hosted a competition for the New England Veteran Firemen’s League.

The competition featured fire companies from around New England bringing their original pumper trucks from the early 1800s to Waterford Beach. There, they would see what team could pump its pumper the hardest and ultimately shoot the water the furthest, with judges measuring where the furthest drop of water landed.

One local team competed – Mystic, headed by Fire Chief Fritz Hilbert – with the rest coming from around New England. One of the strongest teams was from Maine (the team featured in the video), who shot the water 239 feet.

Teams in the New England Veteran Firemen’s League compete all around New England, with Saturday’s Waterford Beach event the first of the season. The final event is held in Manhattan, as officials close down the road to allow the pumpers to fire their hoses down Spring Street, according to Hilbert.