Firefighters dedicate water fight award to Jim Tansey, late legend of the sport

VERMILION — The water fight tournament between area fire departments held annually at Vermilion's Festival of the Fish had a special meaning this year. As opposing firefighters aimed their hoses and shot torrents of water toward a bucket connected to a wire Sunday, they were competing for the inaugural Jim Tansey Award. Tansey was a legend of the water fight sport who died this year, said Lt. Jerry McKinney of the Vermilion Fire Department. A former firefighter, captain and chief with the Wakeman Fire District, Tansey died Jan. 24 following a short battle against COVID-19, according to his obituary. "He won all the time. If he's in there, he's a winner," McKinney said. Although Tansey will no longer be physically present at the Festival of the Fish tournament, McKinney said a decision was made to rename the first-place trophy in his honor. The goal of the water fight is similar to that of tug-of-war. Two opposing teams of firefighters line up facing each other on opposite ends of a wire. A bucket is attached to a wheel suspended from the wire, so spraying the bucket pushes the bucket toward the opponent's side of the wire. Making the bucket reach the end of the opponent's side is the goal. Although the game's premise is simple, different teams took different approaches Sunday and there were occasions when a near defeat turned into a win after the bucket took an unexpected swing. McKinney, who organized the Festival of the Fish's tournament Sunday, said water fighting used to be more widespread but few departments still keep it going today. Tansey was an "old-timer" in the sport who trained and competed against many local firefighters, he said. A team from the Vermilion Fire Department won the top prize Sunday. McKinney said the team didn't use any special technique to win, but "they just battled it out." A Florence Township Fire Department team took second and a Berlin Township Fire Department team rounded out the top three. Ten teams from area departments competed in the tournament. Contact Dylan Reynolds at (440) 329-7123 or dreynolds@chroniclet.com. Follow him on Twitter @drey1357.