Two children die in Marion, Ohio fire. Lieutenant says first crews were short handed in a department that has lost firefighters due to budget cuts.
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A fuzzy image from home video shows you some early moments of the fire on Friday. See the video in a report from WBNS-TV.
Interview with neighbor who attempted rescue
Some thoughts on this fire from Chief Billy Goldfeder at The Secret List
In a department shrinking by attrition, a lieutenant speaks up following the deaths of two children in a house fire at noon on Friday. Neighbors rescued a 19-month-old before firefighters arrived, but a 2-year-old and an 8-month old died. Here are excerpts from the article by Barbara Carmen at The Columbus Dispatch:
“We showed up with an extremely short crew,” said Lt. Wade Ralph of the Marion Fire Department. “We found that the family had no working cell phones, no home phone.”
Ralph said half the company’s firefighters were on squad runs when the call arrived just after noon. That left only a three-man crew to enter the cavernous building, a former hospital converted into rentals. Three other firefighters stayed outside to operate equipment and set up a command post.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Ralph said the apartment was engulfed when firefighters arrived.
See a series of pictures from the Marion Star’s Bill Sinden.
City firefighters quickly called for help, summoning eight off-duty firefighters from home and borrowing six firefighters under a mutual-aid pact with Marion Township.
The economy has taken a toll on the department, Ralph said.
The city generally isn’t replacing those who retire or quit, leaving 59 firefighters in a department that previously had 65. Although losing one firefighter from a fully staffed shift might appear insignificant, it can take vital equipment off the street because firetrucks are large and complicated and require a certain level of staffing.
Helicopter view from WBNS-TV. See more images from the chopper.
Marion Mayor Scott Schertzer said his city has had “almost no growth at all” in this year’s budget. The city is hiring cautiously in case money for the position evaporates, he said.
“Every time an employee leaves, we re-evaluate and assess the budget,” Schertzer said. “I’m concerned the economy is hurting our ability to provide services to citizens.
“We can talk all we want about the budget and job losses, but let’s put things in perspective: Two very young lives were lost, and that’s going to affect that family forever.”
