Founded in 1966
Dryridge Volunteer Fire Department, located near the intersection of White School Road and Route 130, was chartered on October 11, 1966. A former substation of the Mutual Volunteer Fire Department, the newly independent Dryridge received its first fire truck from the Ligonier Borough Fire Department in August of that year. Named for Dryridge Mountain the station sits atop, the department first leased its building from the Dryridge Hunt Club for $1 per year, which was later donated to the department. Teamwork and loyalty run deep in the department’s history, with original members building truck bays and a meeting room at the station that is still used today, and choosing to pay for it out of their own pockets.
Currently, Dryridge has 33 members and is led by Chief Rich Levay. In 2021, the department sponsored a $700,000 federal grant that is being used to replace every single radio across eight Westmoreland County fire departments including Pleasant Unity, Mutual, Trauger, South Greensburg, New Stanton and Lower Burrell. Current goals that Chief Levay has for the department include fundraising to replace an aging rescue truck.
