SC audio; Arson at LODD fire; Armed chief; Explosion catches FF in Denver; Chief told to shape up; Dramatic escape in Moscow; Video — NY, MD, MS & MA
(Updated at 9:35 AM)
Recordings from Salisbury, NC
Fireground radio transmissions have been released from the March 7 fire that killed Justin Monroe and Victor Isler. Each of these reports has different excerpts from the recordings.
The Salisbury Post has a timeline of events that you can read here. The paper went to court to get the recordings released. Read that account here.
Arson at LODD fire
In Kansas City, MO investigators say the fire where Firefighter Terrance Crockett collapsed and died was deliberately set. Details here.
Armed chief “a ticking time bomb”
That’s how the president of the Bryant, Arkansas firefighters union describes the department’s chief. Chief Randy Cox carries a city-issued gun. Chief Cox is apparently upset over two subordinates being returned to the department after being fired by Cox. Firefighters claim to fear the chief. There’s a lot more to it. Read it here.
Explosion on roof throws Denver firefighter
Read this account from the Denver Post of a gas leak on Tuesday evening:
Everything was casual when Juliana Hand got on the elevator with some firefighters at The Lofts at Wazee Wire Works, where she lives, in LoDo tonight. They were checking for a gas leak on the roof, they told her.
Then a boom from above made the elevator shaft rumble and car shake.
“I thought, ‘Oh my God, the world is falling down,” she said.
On the second floor, the elevator stopped and she was ordered out.
On the roof a flash fire from a gas-powered heating-and-air unit threw a firefighter at least six feet. He was unidentified but is expected to be OK, said Fire Department Lt. Phil Champagne.
“We were very lucky,” he said. “It does not appear he suffered any burns.”
The fire did not blaze and was quickly extinguished. Xcel Emergy shut down the gas to the unit, and no leaks or fumes were detected inside, Champagne said.
Firefighters were near the lofts on Wazee Street between 14th and 15th streets, this evening about 6:30 when a person told them he smelled gas near the building. Firefighters used meters to track the leak to the rooftop, Champagne said.
As the firefighter was walking by the HVAC unit, a fireball belched out with enough force to send the man flying. Investigators still don’t know what caused the flash, he said.
Escape from a fire in Moscow
It appears a lot of people got out of this building just in time. Reported to be a driving school that burned Tuesday.
Chemical fire in Germany
Check out FireGeezer for some great photos of an industrial blaze in Cologne on Monday.
While you are there look at FossilMedic Mike Ward’s interesting thoughts on how to handle the critics.
Chief given 45 days to shape up
In Austin, Texas Chief J.J. Adame has been given a deadline to make improvements. Excerpts from statesman.com:
Austin Fire Chief J.J. Adame has been given 45 days to improve his overall performance and to renew the faith of city leaders that he is “the chief to lead the fire department into the future,” according to a memo obtained Tuesday.
In a letter from Assistant City Manager Michael McDonald sent Monday, Adame was instructed to decrease his dependence on Chief of Staff Jim Evans, make clear to firefighters that he is leading the organization and complete improvements set out in a recent payroll audit.
“I recognize that it will be a challenge for you to achieve these mandates within 45 days,” McDonald wrote. “Nevertheless, we are on an aggressive timeline to position this organization with an executive team that will lead this city into the future.”
Adame, who has been Austin’s fire chief for two years, said Tuesday that he met with McDonald this week for counseling and has begun trying to make changes to improve the department.
NY house fire
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xog-mOFTyek&hl=en]
Firefighters pulled back from an interior attack at this vacant home Tuesday morning in Middletown, NY after concerns about the structure’s stability. One firefighter was transported after feeling dizzy. Read more.
MA house fire
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PdjZLjx0_A&hl=en]
A fire early Tuesday morning in Springfield, MA. The fire apparently is related to an earlier shooting spree in the neighborhood. Read more.
Eastern Shore fire
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tG4yvqe_Olg&hl=en]
Another FITHP.net production. This one is a house fire in Hebron, MD from Sunday.
Jackson, MS
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tAMsJRL4Lkg&hl=en]
Helmet camera in operation on March 5 in Jackson, Mississippi.
Hose wrasslin’
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PdjZLjx0_A&hl=en]
Fun with hoses
Who are you going to call?
Another episode in our continuing series where the answer to the question is always the same. This one is from Citra, Florida via the AP:
Nearly a dozen central Florida firefighters pulled a 2-month-old foal from some deep doo-doo after the little horse fell into a septic tank.
Rescuers spent more than an hour Tuesday using hoses and ropes to save the animal who escaped with his mother Reba from a fenced in area.
When Reba crossed over a septic
tank, her weight either broke or displaced the cover and Shooter fell into about 3 feet of foul water.
Shooter was rescued, smelly but unharmed, with only minor cuts.
