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Watsonville Fire Department
This is as dramatic a video as we’ve seen in some time. It is best viewed in full screen and at the 480p quality (the star at the bottom right group of controls).
The fire broke out around 5:45 PM at the Stag Hotel in Watsonville, California. The hotel is at 117 West Beach Street. The injuries, according to news reports, include burns, smoke inhalation and fractures.
In the video it appears police and civilians are making some of the initial rescues using a ladder on Side A. Firefighters arrive, stretch a line and assist with getting others out. It appears that a police officer picks up the first line hitting the fire on the ground floor. Others are brought down a ladder on Side D.
The Stag Hotel is described as transitional housing for those receiving substance abuse treatment and those leaving incarceration.
Rachel Stern & Maria Grusauskas, WatsonvillePatch.com:
Three victims of the fire were air lifted out of the area, one for a broken leg from jumping out a window, and the other two for major burns.
“The first guy got burned pretty bad. They took him away first because his hide was falling off. His shirt was smoking,” said Russell Leckbee, a resident in room 37 of the hotel.
Leckbee had been dragged out of a window by two police officers.
Firefighters from the station a block away on Second Street responded quickly, Rickman said. Fire Chief Mark Bisbee said they immediately went to work rescuing residents and doused the flames in 8-10 minutes.
Rickman said the hotel has 50 rooms – three apartments in two buildings. He said about 45 men lived there. The fire was in the larger front building.
The building, constructed in 1927, had no sprinklers. The residents are a mix, some disabled, some struggling with substance abuse or in recovery, some on parole. All are men with little income.
Tom Dunlap, Tarm Hannula Register-Pajaronian.com
Many bystanders helped police and firefighters get people out of the burning building or helped with ladders and hoses.
One man reportedly jumped from the second-story window to avoid the smoke and fire. Other residents said they considered jumping from the second story.
“I stuck my head out the bathroom window,” said Rick Cresswell, whose face was blackened from the smoke. “I thought about jumping.”
Bing Maps Bird’s Eye View shows Watsonville Station 1 & Stag Hotel.
Do you want to sell a rig? Click HERE to find out how with SellFireTrucks.com.
Also on STATter911 …
- UPDATE: Early radio traffic & more video from Watsonville, CA Stag Hotel fire. – May 2, 2012
- Raw video: Five-alarms for Boston apartment fire. Resident jumps on & injures lieutenant. – October 27, 2012
- UPDATE: Must see arrival video & fireground audio: Residents jump at Aurora, CO apartment fire that left two dead and 25 injured. Arson suspected. More video added. – August 7, 2012
- From the archives: If you haven’t seen this before you will want to. Film of rescues from the 1963 Roosevelt Hotel fire in Jacksonville, Florida. – January 18, 2012
Comments
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YIKES!!
Gotta do what you gotta do with limited personnel. Kudos to the cop grabbing the hose while the FF assists with rescues. More cops than firefighters initially. Good job guys!!
See, inside every cop there is a firefighter screaming to get out!!
Very nice teamwork from the fire and police personnel and civilians on scene. Quick water on the fire and the engine crew had their priorities straight.
Looks like a bad situation. Numerous rescues, a whole lotta tactical and strategic decisions need to be made NOW and 3 firemen. Nice the cops actually helped this time.
Yeah, I know, exterior attack, cooked anyone inside, blah, blah, blah. Except survivability in that room was zero. And based on the number of rescues that were needed, not much else they could do at that point.
Feel sorry for the first in engine crew, that had to suck.
Why not open up with the pre-piped unmanned deck gun upon arrival? Just swing the gun around, aim for the window and let it rip. First line off engine? The crosslay. Always the crosslay. The firefighter that pulled the crosslay traveled around the engine (no doubt past a preconnect 2.5″ line or preconnected ground based monitor / blitzfire) to get to the crosslay. Does anybody choose to use ANY other hose or devices on an engine anymore? Second line pulled? You guessed it; the other crosslay. Did somebody put a safety switch on the crosslay trays that won’t allow any other devices to be used until all the crosslays have been used? Think how much money could be saved if all the engine carried was a couple crosslays and a supply line? Only 2 sizes of hose to deal with, no need for rear, side, or front discharges, no deluge gun plumbing,no need for a 1500gpm+ pump, and all that savings might be enough that an extra firefighter could be hired to pull the second crosslay at the same time as the first one. The firefighters were in an overwhelming situation on their arrival. They appeared understaffed for what they were up against. Nice work by the Police Officer on the hoseline. Whatever it takes to get the job done. Please post signs in all riding positions that read: “The crosslay is not the only hose or water delivery tool on this engine. Please choose your weapon based on the size of the fire”.
Geez…wish you had been there to “do it right”!
Best comment and I haven’t gone below yet to view the other post! Just watch the damn video and say Wow! Good job by all!!
Often the right size line (deck gun) is not pulled for the amount of fire. GPM’s v/s BTU’s. All these videos of fires not going out while water is sprayed is good example of this.
… however this hand line did a good job extinguishing this fire. Even with untrained operators.
A 2.5 is sometimes right, a 1.75 is also sometimes right. Before you cast judgement you have to ask yourself, did it work?
Don’t be blind to the results. It just takes away from your point.
You might be an expert… but you can not argue with results. Their choice of line was effective. They did a great job!
I have to argue with you on this one. With limited manpower (FF’s), that first off crosslay is nothing BUT a lifesaving tool. Protect those rescues being made from the front window. Especially if you can’t make the hydrant and are working on limited tank water. Second due should/would lead off with the 2.5″.
An excellent job by all. Never underestimate the capabilities of a couple of civilians and a cop when seconds count.
Is anyone else of the opinion that FireGear has changed his moniker to Rudedawg?
Every single dang video: “Pull the 2.5!” “Deck gun that sucker” and on and on and on and on and on.
Apparently you didn’t watch the video. Or you don’t know how to read smoke and what the different colors mean.
Go buy yourself a new needle or record, because the above is broke and getting really annoying.
That police officer chose the wrong profession. He did a great knockdown on the fire. Don’t understand the two firefighters standing around at 5:13 in the video though? Good job by all involved.
I’m wondering if policing is his second job and he’s a firefighter for his first job. From what I could see he handled that line like a pro.
Where I’m at, that WAS a 1.5 Fire……. Even with some of the work being done by folks with minimal training, the Fire darkened down quickly. There was wayyyy too much to do with limited manpower to worry about a 2.5, and who knows if they have a Blitzfire? We don’t have one, and we’re pretty aggressive and see a fair amount of Fire here…… I respectfully offer that there was a lot more to deal with in Watsonville that day than worry about hose sizes……
Agreed!
Mark –”Yeah, I know, exterior attack, cooked anyone inside, blah, blah, blah. Except survivability in that room was zero”
Not blah, blah, blah, an exterior attack in that situation definitely made things worse for those still trapped inside, and the firefighters in there trying to rescue them. Granted, the police officer did not know that and thought he was doing a good thing, so kudos to him for not standing by doing nothing. You’re right, the survivability in THAT room was zero, but it is not THAT room we are worried about. We should be concerned about the other rooms with living victims in them that we are pushing the heat, smoke, and fire into. As firefighters, we can not just say blah,blah, blah, that was a serious mistake. At the very least the first firefighter that made it over to the police officer should have told him to shut the line down. That line needed to be inside the building protecting the victims and firefighters attempting rescues.
Rudedawg– Your comments are even more troubling. You sound like you have some training in firefighting, and you want to pull up to a fire like that with that many victims and point the deck gun in the window!?!?! Yes, you could have used a 2.5″ line in that situation, but keep in mind, not every fire truck is set up the way they are in your town. On my truck, we have one crosslay, a 2.5″ pre-connect, and four 1 3/4″ pre-connects on the rear discharges. I don’t even know what you’re talking about in the last half of your post.
That being said, that was an extreme situation where those firefighters had to make a lot of decisions real fast with what seems like very limited manpower. They did what they did and got everybody out, so great job to them! It’s easy to sit here with none of the details and watch this video and Monday morning quarterback the whole fire, but it is very different in real time so I would never fault them for the decisions they made. As for the rest of us that are Monday morning quarterbacking, it is scary to think that some of you have the time to sit down and process this whole situation and you still type the comments that you do!
Great job WFD and WPD!
Good points … except for the part about “the FFs in there trying to rescue them”. Did another crew tunnel in from down the block?? I didn’t see anyone going in until after the fire was knocked; that first in engine crew looked pretty busy out front.
Good job by FD, PD and the civilians.
That was a pretty impressive volume of fire for a residential occupancy.
No, it didn’t. CHAOS pretty much summed it up. If they had tried to make entry into that front door, they would have had to push the fire as well, resulting in the same thing. And needing at least one fireman on the attack line instead of performing rescues.
Yes, some steam and heat might have been pushed, but it is obvious that the fire was not pushed. The fire went out. As is obvious to everyone but Rudedawg who apparently doesn’t know the difference between smoke and steam.
Tough situation, no doubt. Rescues vs extinguishment and the problems going away. They did both with what they had. I stand by my original statement.
You can’t have it both ways rudedawg…..on one hand you’re saying pull the big guns out, but the next sentence youre saying they “appeared understaffed”. While I agree that sometimes the crosslay is pulled too quickly, I think in this fire, with the manpower on hand, it was the right choice…. And even in the hands of an “untrained” police officer- it knocked down a considerable amount of fire fairly quickly…… I’m not sure the same officer or lone firefighter would have been as effective with a bigger line, adding the extra work to maneuver the heavier 2-1/2.
I think the video shows a great effort by the first in crews, and judging by the video, you can’t argue too much with their results.
Seemed like the cop made a nice knockdown from outside with that line. Must’ve been enough to git-r-done. If it had been a duece and a half lying there, I’m not sure he could’ve had the same results by himself.
Anyone else notice on that quick pan to the left how far back the ladder was parked?
Can anyone explain where the TRUCK companies are?
How are cops and firemen alike? LOL Good knock.
I’m thinking that may be a 2″ line.
Nice work. I think the big lesson here is that if you put the fire out, a lot of the “rescue” (vs. removal) problem goes away or can be delayed a bit. This was basically a room fire, quickly controlled by one line. This is not a deck gun or blitz fire event. Both take more time than stretching a line to set up and deck pipes have the wrong angle (too high). The line pulled was the best choice and it is then ready to advance when the staffing gets there. This fire went as well as it could with the staffing on scene. Center hallway buildings are tough. A lot of things need to happen quickly and in a well coordinated manner.
This.
And as 95%er points out, if you put the fire out, the other problems go away.
First due had their hands full, to be sure.
Rudedawg, once again you are wrong. The cop did a great job and knocked the fire effectively. The angle and the size of the 1 3/4″ attack line was much more conducive to maximun knockdown. Could not of done as much with a deck pipe considering Tank water, manpower,rescues. Once again these individuals did whatever it took to get the job done and they can be proud of their efforts.
wow…tough crowd.
lesson # 1 from Probie School a LOOOONG time ago:
“Put the fire out and all your other problems go away.”
they (everyone there) put the fire out. very quickly. with no wasted time or effort.
i like deck guns, but not sure if this was a deck gun job with fire out just 1-2 windows. Looks to me like the cop and FF did a fine job and knocked that fire right out.
all those who say that the fire should be attacked from unburned to burned side would feel less than benevolent to that theory if they were trapped on the floor above the fire roasting to within an inch of their lives while the attack line went to the rear of the structure and battled their way through heat and smoke to the front.
In the 3-4 minutes it would take to advance that way, the 2nd floor would light up and anyone inside would be gone.
repeat after me…put the fire out and all of your other problems go away….
First line in service in no time flat (quicker than 90% of the recent vids here), immediate rescues and a crap sandwich handed to them on arrival. They did what they had to do. Putting the fire out was what would help, granted darken, then go in but…. Nice work, should be an example.
This is good stuff. I would have given the ladder to the cop and taken the line. You bet the fire needed to get knocked down on the outside and then make a push inside. I am troubled by the comments that keep saying “you’re gonna push the fire.” Did you see the smoke get pushed into the building? They say where there’s smoke there’s fire. I did not see smoke starting to come out of the windows on the side of the building. Did anyone take the time to read the UL Study on the Impact of Ventilation on Fire Behavior? Anyone? Bueller? Let me provide you with a quote from the Executive Summary about pushing fire…”It appears that in most
cases the fire was slowed down by the water application and that external water application had no negative impacts to occupant survivability.”
Again, the window where the initial firefighters concentrated their efforts, did not show any signs of the fire getting close. Let the cops put up the ladder and the firemen put out the fire. Remember….put out the fire and the problems go away.
thanks Tony C, i dont know how much longer i can hear people say” push the fire”! Straight streams or smooth bore streams extinguish fires, not push them!
Hey, at least I’m getting different views. That is why I post. These guys did a great job with what they have. Their website says 3 man crews. The deck gun idea, while not thought of highly by some; can be unmanned once aimed. While some schools of thought say it will push the fire, it will also put it out. I’m not trying to be critical of the department in the video. I’m trying to view the other options of attack. A 2.5″ line can be used by a single firefighter when placed in the looped fashion and sat on. It won’t be able to be moved around, but one guy CAN use it. I just believe that we are becoming too reliant on the size of hose in the crosslay, and ignoring other options. These videos are great opportunities for all of us, no matter where we are from; to look at it and learn from it. I appreciate all the comments. Good or bad.
I am with 95%er on this one! A veteran New York City Chief once said put the fire out and all your other problems will go away. That may be over simplifying it but you can’t argue with the results. Stay Safe Brothers!
Tony, What was the cop going to do with a ladder? Climb in a window in shortsleeves? The way the cop tossed that line around tells me he knows what he’s doing.
Rudedawg, WTF are you talking about? Deck gun? Really? with people still inside? Go learn a little about firefighting before you sputter.
A smaller line gets water on the fire and can be controlled by one firefighter and it’s location can easily be changed.
Theories of pushing fire need to go away like 3″ supply line, 1.5″ attack lines (or worse booster reels), and 3/4 boots.
Excellent job. Knocking that fire down was a big reasons that it was 17 injured, not 17 killed.
Had a fire years ago where everyone but the nieghbors cat was throwing ladders and humping hose. As long as the job gets done and no one gets hurt.
Good job by all under very tough conditions. A lot of good points here, but I didn’t see anyone state the obvious. Another city that staffs their PD better than their FD. According to the city website, they run two Engines and one Ladder with 3 people on each. That is terrible staffing. This looks like a fairly urban area, and they’re running 9 people out the door?! Maybe the Chief should have thanked the cops publicly and then stated how understaffed they are for this type of event. I have no idea if they have automatic aid or what their call volume is, but I’m thinking 9 on a shift isn’t cutting it.
When I first saw this, I prepared myself for the inevitable deluge of comments of how the first line off was not a 2.5 and how for big fire you need the big hose. As was mentioned, this wasn’t really a “big” fire – it was a very well ventilated free burning fire. Half of the combustion was taking place inside the fire compartment, the rest of the combustion were the fireballs visible from the street. It’s good scenario for the potential victims inside – the fire is vented and trying to burn the sky down rather than be confined and try to burn the rest of the building down around them. As was seen, Officer McFirepants was able to put a sufficient knock on the fire with a crosslay and it took place in rapid succession from the time the fist due arrived. Also as noted, the FF’s were busy doing a rescue in the hot zone (with proper PPE) and the PD was doing fire attack from the rather warm zone. All in all a job well done
Overall they got the job done, every fire ground operation has room for improvement, once you think you fought the perfect fire and did everything perfect is when one becomes complacent in their skills and it is time for them to retire.
So I will add in my 2 cents not to be critical but to share my experience and point of view as an engine company officer.
People are creatures of habits, day in day out they enter and leave via the front door, they never really plan or pay attention to other exits and when fire strikes they instinctively head for the door or elevators they came in on. The pipeman never gives up the pipe! Ideally he / she are to advance to the seat of the fire and extinguish same, but many loose sights of Basic Engine Company Operations in doing so. Confine, Control, Extinguish! Especially with limited resources, that 1st line should have been in the front door and placed between the civilians and the fire and to protect the integrity of the hallway and stairway. Exterior operations mixed with interior operations are the makings of a tragedy period.
Well I’m glad someone on here gets it.
Being rude doesn’t pay.
I will just offer this, I think they did a great job the fire went out and they made multiple rescues.
In our department with our set up and staffing (driver, officer, firefighter) we would have gone with a 2 1/2 handline exterior attack. Darkened the fire down and then stretched the 2 1/2 in or pulled a seperate 1 3/4 line or had the second arriving engine pull that line and stretch in to finish it off. We routinely deploy a 2 1/2 with 2 people. In the defensive position we sit on it and let the ground absord the nozzle reaction with 1 firefighter. In the interior team work, communicaiton, and webbing is key (and training) it is not easy with 2 people but it can be done, I know cause we do it.
I say this knowing my department, and our capabilities not everyone is set up like this and would not be able to do it this way, I know several other engines are coming, including chiefs safty officers, special service companies and medic units. Not everyone has that luxury. So keep that in mind when commenting.
That is all stay safe brothers, and strong work
Never like seeing “shoulda done this or that” comments when your that quick on scene w/ so much to do. I dont agree however, about deck gunning it or 2 1/2 off the bat…First a deck gun would have depleted their water in as quick as 2 min (depending on their tank) with no supply laid. Second, its a block building w/ a room or two heavily involved. The cop (who did an outstanding job!) basically steamed & snuffed the bulk of that fire out with that 1 3/4 line.
Now if youve got the second alarm calvary all showing up at the same time, different story, different tactics. I say hell of a job by everyone onscene. Good to know our society hasnt crumbled yet, by the way civilians jumped right in!
Stay Safe, God bless
~Scott
FDCam.com
My only issue with your comment is that there is no prize for putting the fire out with water in your tank.
If you hit it with the deck gun, and put the fire out and no water is left then thats a good thing. If you dont put the fire out but you have 200gals left then its a bad thing.
The problem is instead of being aggressive with out big guns we are conservative and when we go to them the fire is usually to far gone for anything to make a quick impact. Then you get the “see that 2 1/2 doesnt work”.
Get aggressive with them and they work!
That is some video.
Everybody’s on the same team at times like that…
The engine arrived at 1:05 the line was stretched by 1:28 charged at 1:44 and flowing water at 2:12. I think it was a pretty good attack for what they pulled up on. I think the cop made a better knock than alot of firemen on these videos… but did anyone notice him running down the alley with an air-pack at about 4:35?
Great video Dave… keep um coming!
Put the fire out… and most of your problems go away…
Maybe 1 engine and 1 truck arrived with 6 people from the station 2 blocks away. Pull 1 line – give it to the bystanders and police. Let the bystanders and police catch any jumpers. All 6 firefighters go into the building with SCBA and search the upper floor. Thats the best case scenario that I can see.
I knew they were in trouble when the engine had a hosebed cover. Probably for all the snow they get in Watsonville.
This is a classic limited manpower scenario with an obvious rescue. Ladder before line or vise versa? Lineman hustled into position and drops the line to get a victim. Fortunately, it looks like masonary construction and no stairwell to protect (?) Officer was not “combat ready” for the situation. Thank God for the PD and bldg construction on this one.
My 2 cents 500 miles South of Watsonville, in Ca.
A. Hope all of he victims injured are doing well.
1st. Great job done by all.
2nd. This video makes the point as Tony C, DD and Anon mention that the Initial “Transitional Attack” method, Exterior to Interior Hose streams as described in the UL, Chicago FDNY Fire Studies have merit.
And we’ll be seeing more of this in online video’s.
Clearly the Police Officer used a straight stream (as described in the studies) for one or two minutes during his application of water from the outside and then the hose line was moved inside by one of the firefighters.
3rd. FYI, All California ICS Type I,II & III Engines have aluminum hose bed covers as part of their Design Specifications. This is due to the fact in previous years, Engines participating in 5 Engine Strike Teams moving from one part of the State to another have had a fire start in hose bed due to flying brands, because their “Local” specifications called for a canvas cover. So State wide Uniformity with the hose bed covers is now the norm.
4th.FYI, Great Paint job on the building. Since it was built in 1927, its called “Pre-33″ (1933) Construction, which means that it survived a Major So. Cal. Earthquake in 1933. But in order to be used in its current capacity it had to be “Hardened” for survivability in the next Quake. Too bad it was exempted from a fire sprinkler system.