Cambridge, Ontario fire dispatch received a call from Regional Ambulance reporting a propane explosion in a large industrial building at 1429 Branchton Road in North Dumfries Township with one serious burn victim March 3, 2016. Cambridge dispatched a full response; four stations and tanker to the call at 7:46, assuming there was a fire in addition to the medical call for the burn patient.
Cambridge covers this area under contract for first hour for North Dumfries Township. A second 911 call from the farm confirmed a fire in one of their buildings. P5 requested both North Dumfries tankers when updated by this additional information confirming a fire. Once on scene, P5 reported a very large chicken barn approximately 200 x 30’, fully involved and requested a full response from North Dumfries.
North Dumfries responded with their two pumpers and two tankers and approximately 20 firefighters. North Dumfries’ chief requested dispatch to activate mutual aid for two tankers from St George (Brant County). Tankers shuttled water from a hydrant approximately ¾ of a mile from the scene. An excavator was brought in to pull the building down to gain access to hot spots. The Ontario Fire Marshall, TSSA, and fire prevention are investigating the fire to determine the cause. Box 690 was on scene for six hours providing rehab.
Around 8:30 AM on Wednesday, February 3, Monroe County (PA) 9-1-1 dispatched units to the Blakeslee Inn & Restaurant on Route 940 in Tobyhanna Township for a commercial fire alarm. Soon after, reports of a structure fire began to come in.
Crews arrived to find a working fire in a large motel with restaurants inside. Extra assistance was immediately requested. Firefighters throughout Monroe County were brought in as well as crews from Carbon, Luzerne, and Lackawanna Counties.
Tobyhanna Township Ladder 2 was on the scene in the front of the building using an elevated master stream while Lake Harmony Ladder 17 was set up in the rear. Tobyhanna Township Rescue 3 was the primary engine on the “C” side of the building pulling a draft from two portable ponds. Albrightsville Rescue 1651 was the primary engine supplying Ladder 2 while a White Haven engine was also drafting out of ponds in the front of the building and supplied an elevated master stream by Freeland Ladder 136 who was on the “A” side.
At the height of the fire, crews were hampered by strong winds and torrential downpours. A tanker task force was requested out of Luzerne County, and before 1:00 PM, the fire was brought under control. The equivalent of 6 or 7 alarms were called including 25 tankers.
Chicago had a 2-11 Alarm fire in a three-story, brick building with apartments over stores. Upon arrival companies assisted resident from balconies via ladders. The fire started on the second floor and efforts to contain the fire were hampered by frozen hydrants in the area. As fire spread to the third floor and eventually the cockloft, a 2-11 was struck and companies were eventually ordered out of the the light-weight constructed building for defensive operations.
Several area photographers were at the scene and submitted images. There is more to see at chicagoareafire.com.
Frederick County Fire & Rescue units were alerted for smoke in the house, Old Middletown Road, Jefferson, MD (Box area 20) on March 3. Dispatch advised units en route that callers were reporting fire showing and possible entrapment. First arriving units on-scene reported fire and smoke coming from the 2nd floor, and it was determined that all occupants had evacuated the structure. Command (Jefferson Chief 20) requested the rapid intervention and tanker task force assignments bringing mutual aid units from Loudoun County.
More of my photos from the scene can be viewed on my Flickr site:
Many thanks to my friend Lt. Kelly Lowery of Jefferson Co. 20 and Loudoun County Fire & Rescue for sharing his shots from when he first arrived on the scene (running first due with Tanker 612).
Rolling Meadows (IL) companies were called to 5201 Carriageway Drive for a reported fire in a third floor apartment around 8PM Wednesday evening (3/4/15). While en-route, they were advised of a sofa on fire with flames climbing the wall, and Battalion 15 upgraded the alarm to a Code 4 for the working fire.
Police arriving on the scene reported flames shooting out of a third floor window, and that a resident had jumped from a third floor balcony. The alarm was then upgraded to a MABAS Box Alarm.
When firefighters arrived, police officers were performing CPR on the victim who later died.
The alarm was subsequently upgraded to a 2nd Alarm and then a 3rd Alarm before being struck out shortly before midnight.
The Chicago Fire Department responded to this fire in the 1900 Block of West Devon at 0330 on Sunday morning (2/15/15). It was eventually elevated to a still and box alarm and companies went defensive. What you can’t see in the images is that the building was a t-shape and had a fairly large extension off the back of the building. Police did rescue one resident who was transported to a local hospital. Temperatures were around zero degrees causing everything in the vicinity to ice over. I took the opportunity to take some images of a few engine companies I don’t often get to shoot.
