Why are we targets again?

 

 

Being something of an unofficial fire service historian, I am familiar with how firefighters where pelted with rocks - and sometimes worse - during the late 1960s and early 1970s. And, frankly, I thought that was an ugly chapter that the fire service could put behind them . . . recent attacks on firefighters / EMTs in Webster, New York (2 Killed and 2 other injured in fire scene ambush) and Hoover, Alabama (Hoover, Alabama man opens fire on firefighters) are causing me to rethink that. Back then, when the "Burn, baby, burn" mindset was prevalent, I might have been able to understand pelting firefighters with rocks or bottles, but these two most recent attacks make absolutely no sense.

 

In both instances, emergency personnel were responding to calls from their attacker's for help. In the Webster incident, the shooter intentionally set his vehicle on fire knowing that police and firefighters would respond allowing him to "do what I do best" (quoted from a suicide note left by the shooter in Webster). My question in both cases is why?  In both cases, as far as I have heard, it is what law enforcement officials refer to as a random incident -- meaning the assailant's had never met their victim(s) prior to the attacks. What could make a person so angry that they would just open fire on another person?

 

One thing I do know. It's time for us - the public they serve - to step up and say thank you!

 

 



Fire Prevention Week 2012

Yesterday - Monday, October 8, 2012 - marked the beginning of National Fire Prevention Week 2012 in the United States. But, have you ever wondered, how it got started? I did some research and found the answer.

It was established to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire that broke out on the evening of October 8, 1871 and continue to burn throughout the next day. By the time it was finally extinguished, it had resulted in the deaths of more than 250 people, left 100,000 Chicago residents homeless, destroyed in excess of 17,400 structures, and blackened more than 2,000 acres.

The "moo theory"

Turns out Mrs. O'Leary's cow wasn't to blame.

Popular legend has it that the conflagration was caused by a cow belonging to Mrs. Catherine O'Leary that kicked over a lantern setting the barn on fire. Like any good story, there is some truth to it and that truth is that the blaze most definitely did originate in the area of Mrs. O'Leary's barn. From that point, there are differing theories. One of these suggests that the blaze was caused by several neighborhood boys who were near the barn smoking cigarettes while another theory suggest the fire was caused by one of Mrs. O'Leary's neighbors. Perhaps the most far-fetched, at least to this writer, is the theory that the fire was the result of a fiery meteorite that fell to earth that night and started fires simultaneously in Chicago, Michigan, and  Wisconsin. But, like the "moo theory" significant evidence has never been presented to prove or disprove it.

The biggest fire that week

Although it's hard to believe, the Great Chicago fire was NOT the biggest conflagration to occur that week. That infamous honor belongs to the Peshtigo Fire -- officially the most devastating forest fire in American history (See: Peshtigo firestorm). The fire, which also occurred on October 8, 1871, raced through northeast Wisconsin completely destroying sixteen (16) towns, killing an estimated 1,152 people, and blackening 1.2 million acres.

Like the Great Chicago Fire, there are many theories has to how the fire started. The most plausible of these says that railroad workers clearing land to lay track unintentionally started the blaze that was quickly carried by gusty winds. Described by survivors of that horrendous day, the flames were whipping through the area "like a tornado".

Until next time, stay safe!

Firehouses & Fire halls (a Flickr photo group)

As I've sat this morning listening to the 182nd General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, I've been working on my Flickr photo sharing account. One of the things I accomplished was to set up a new group entitled "Fire stations and fire halls" and I invite you to check it out. Here is the link to it :Firehouses & fire halls (a Flickr group

Hope to see you soon!

Did they push him too far?

Tonight a Roswell man is dead - apparently of his own hand - and his home is in shambles following an explosion. The victim, age 53, faced eviction from his home. Investigators surmise than rather than face the loss of his home and the daunting task of starting over, he doused the structure with gasoline and then ignited it. Looking back at the circumstances that led up to today's tragic events, I can only wonder if city officials, in their efforts to enforce the law, pushed the man nicknamed "Chicken Man" too far and the only way he knew to push back was to destroy the house and end his life? Consider these facts:

1. The man, who raised chicken on his property, had recently been jailed due to violating what officials called "various property codes". Apparently that following a neighbor's complaint about the chickens.

2. While he was incarcerated, he fell behind on his mortgage payment and had been struggling to bring payments current since his release. In an interview last month with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution he was quoted as saying "I'm still trying to get this resolved, but it doesn't look like it's going to be happy".

Although I'm not an expert in the field, I can imagine that the "Chicken Man" was under considerable stress knowing he was about to lose his home and, this morning, when Fulton County Marshal's arrived at the house shortly before 11 a.m., he couldn't take anymore and decided to end it once and for all. Moments before igniting the house, he talked with a reporter for WSB television and thanked him for all that he had done. He ended the conversation with "I can't tell you what's going to happen . . . it ain't pretty though".

Until next time . . .

Old fire apparatus had class!

By today's standards, this 1973 Mack/Baker Aerialscope looks kind of plain and utilitarian, but I've always like them for just that reason . . .they are work horses! This particular rig - "Yellow 11" - is part of the Atlanta Fire & Rescue Department's fleet and still protects Hartsfield-Jackson Airport. Please don't misunderstand me, I'm a fan of our modern day apparatus, but there was (and still is) something about those "old" apparatus slogging away on the fireground. I don't know how many times I've seen East Point's 1970ish Ford/Pirsch engines (pictured at left) still sitting on a fire scene going strong after an all-night battle with the "Red Devil" (fire). The hood would probably be up to give the big motor some extra fresh, cool air and the lights had probably been shutoff but it was still there doing what it does best! Then, when the job was done, it would rumble back to life and return its crew to their quarters.

Of course the title of workhorse wasn't limited to just the engines and trucks . . .starting back as early as the mid sixities many departments had begun to operate "first aid squads" -- a precursor to today's modern Emergency Medical Service (EMS). Like it's counterpart across the bay in the firehouse, these units weren't afraid of a little hard work. I think one of my favorites was this one from Baltimore, Maryland which, incidentally was in service with that department when I was born in 1963. And, make no mistake, when they started to get some age that didn't mean their fire service career was over. They would be rehabbed - either by the original manufacturer or by the department shops - and begin a second life as an air unit (to refill self-contained breating apparatus (SCBA) on the fire ground) or some other job for a workhorse with a proven track record of service!

To see some of these units in action: Fire & EMS operations (Flicker group)

Until next time . . .