Savannah departments race for a cause

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By Melanie Ruberti - bio | email

SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) - It's not enough that Savannah firefighters, David Levinson and Elijah Walden, lay their lives on the line everyday.

On Saturday, they'll join thousands of others racing up and back the Talmadge Bridge for the 10K run. Only David and Elijah, and five members of the Savannah-Chatham Metro Police Department, will be competing against each other and running in gear.

"It's not exactly designed for running," smiled David, "The helmet Is about five pounds and it feels like twenty when it's on your head."

The event is called "Guns -n- Hoses". It's not just a competition, the two departments are also raising money and collecting food for the Second Harvest Food Bank. "Given the economic times they're going through right now, they're needing more and more aid to give to people," David said.

"There's a lot of people out there without meals and they need help," explained Elijah. "What we're trying to do is everything we can possible to reach out to the community and make it known that there is a problem that exists and do as much as we can to fix it."

The police department won the competition last year. While the firefighters give them credit, they say this year, they're bringing their "A" game. "This year, we've been training," said David. "We're definitely out to take back the title, but we'll see. We're coming for you. We're out to win!"

"Aside from training, we also have a few tricks up our sleeves. Namely, Krispy Kreme at all the water stations," laughed Elijah.

While the firefighters may be talking trash now, both teams will let their feet do the talking on Saturday. They know at the end of the day, Savannah's needy will truly win the race. The group hopes to raise more than $2,000 for Second Harvest.

The Enmark Savannah Bridge Run will kick off bright and early Saturday at 8 am.