Flat Rats honor the late Chris Franz with Block Party Labor Day Weekend

The Owego Hose Team, Inc. and Croton Hose Co. #3, affectionately known as the “Flat Rats,” are hosting a block party Sunday, Sept. 3 on Talcott Street in honor of the late #3’s and hose team member Christopher M. Franz.  

Nicknamed “Toph,” the Chris Franz Memorial Hose Race events include a memorial bike ride, chicken BBQ, hose race, and open house at Company #3’s station with theme, “Have a Toph Day.”  

Talcott Street will be closed from McMaster Street to Spruce Street from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Parking is available at the old school administration building lot off of Adeline Street.

Franz, the son of the late Owego Fire Chief Ed Franz and wife Rose passed away suddenly of a heart condition in January. According to organizers, Chris was part of the fabric that held Station #3 and its company together. From cleaning the station, cooking the roast at the annual #3 clambake, or ensuring the Company #3 truck #803 was in order, Chris has been dearly missed.  

You would see him pedaling gallantly from his house on George Street to #3’s station a block away whenever the fire whistle sounded. Always community minded, Chris was also member and leader of Boy Scout Troop 37; Lieutenant and Custodial Engineer of Croton Hose Co. #3, a member of the Owego Fire Police and the VFW Post #1371 Auxiliary.

The day will kick off with a memorial bike ride leaving the Franz house from 29 George St. at 9:30 a.m. to St. Patrick’s Church on Main Street where Chris worked for 17 years, never missing a day on the job.  

Chicken BBQ dinners including “Cornell Chicken” halves, the Duke’s baked beans, Hinerwadel’s salt potatoes, and Roma roll for $10 will be available at 11 a.m. until gone at #3s Station. Proceeds will benefit the Baker Fireman’s Fountain Restoration.  

A hose race where firefighters test their skills will take place at 12:30 p.m. The Flat Rats Station #3 will be open at 11 a.m. for visitors who can take in the company’s 173 year history through pictures, memorabilia and trophies. 

Ice Cream Works, owned and operated by Chris’s brother Mike and wife Diane Franz, will be providing free ice cream. As Chris was a music connoisseur, in tribute, DJ Tommy D of Flat Rat Adventures will be spinning his favorite tunes throughout the day. An after party at the Rainbow Trail on North Avenue will conclude the events.

Incorporated as a not for profit in 2015 the Owego Hose Teams, Inc. have been competing in firematics since 1951. The year 2016 marked their 65th anniversary season. Hose races are timed events where firefighters test their skills. Teams of five members must connect nozzles to hoses, hoses to hoses, and hoses to the fire hydrant, and knock down targets in the quickest time in the ladder, wye, and straight lay competitions. Hose races improve basic firefighting skills. In addition to hose racing the teams support community projects such as the Baker Fireman’s Fountain Restoration.