Iron Firemen Wooden Ladders & Iron Firemen
Storms … high winds, rain and hail blew through Roanoke this evening andleft a trail of debris behind.
Around 2pm this evening we received a call that a roof had blown off a building … yea right. We run this address all the time so I know it’s a complex of brick apartments. I’m thinking we’ll get there to find some missing shingles…
Well, we were 1st in and guess what … THEY WERE RIGHT! From my vantage point, I could see sky through the 3rd floor apartment!
The exterior appeared to be stable while debris was visible in the 3rd floor units. We quickly secured all utilities, made a walk around and began our searches. Primary and secondary searches on all floors resulted in “all clear”.
Oh .. wait … We did make one “grab” and once again it came from “Lucky #13”
Yep … Boots (Todd Harris) saved the dog from apartment #9. Only one resident was home when the storm hit and she was out of the building prior to our arrival. When we made apartment #9 the dog had that look like “what the hell just happened?”
This picture is the actual dog and his beloved rescuer “Boots” talking over the incident. Boots says the dogs swears he didn’t do it… LMAO.
Further investigation found the exterior and load barring walls to be stable despite heavy damage to the roof.
Here’s a shot of the damage from the tip of Ladder #5.
Obviously, with half of the roof missing, the upper floor sustained heavy water damage from the storm.
It didn’t take long for the carpet on the 3rd floor to soak through and begin leaking to the 2nd.
The brothers from Ladders 5, 2 and 1 quickly went to work on salvage operations. Furniture and personal belongings were placed into strategic piles and then covered with salvage covers. This effort not only saved thousands of dollars but priceless memories as well (pictures, documents etc)… Well done boys!
We responded 12 pieces which brought 26 members to the scene.
I guess it ended up being just a big “salvage” operation and that suits me fine. The time of day was just right so everyone was at work .. or not at home anyway. The other plus is that good salvage operations are tangible… the occupants can see and touch it! They know their Fire Department worked to save their personal property. Chalk another “PR” incident up for “Lucky #13” (revisit this earlier post)
Here are a few more shots from the incident ….
You may recognize that face from the center pic. That’s Brad Glidden .. aka “Opie” from my Melrose Misfit and Station #3 days. Opies Captain (Clayton Martin who also draws a lot of attention here on IronFiremen) gave him a pretty hard time this evening. Opie came in on Engine #3 and was assigned with my crew (Wheezy was there with Ladder 5). Captain Martin was teasing him saying that he should be happy because he was back on an incident with his “daddy” (referring to me). Clayton has even been calling Opie “Buckaroo #2” LMAO.
Well the good news is that YES Clayton he was with me ….
He was INSIDE …. he was “DOING IT” ..LOL
Had he of been unfortunate enough to had to remain with you, where would he have been??
Yea..OUTSIDE …. YARD BREATHING! LMAO … LMAO
All kidding aside, 3 Engine was on our heels and that placed Captain Martin in a “Command” position. As always, Clayton did a great job of assessing the situation, making the necessary assignments and mitigating the circumstances.
Click HERE for some local News coverage or watch the video below …
Ok, since I was kinda on the subject of “my boys” .. (Opie, Wheezy, Tyrone, Coon and Bugg) I haven’t posted about a new delivery yet.
Coon and Sherry are now the proud parents of a beautiful baby girl … Brook Boone!
I’m not sure of the weight, length etc but I do know that she had all her parts.
Baby, Mom and even Dad are home and doing well.
Ahhhh the heart ache he is in for … LOL
Just wait til the Buckaroo gets his eyes on that little cutie! LMAO
Those of you who have followed my site from the Station #9 and #3 blogs know how much Coon and “The Boys” mean to me. Scott is a Top Fireman, a great Medic but, most importantly; a good MAN. Scott will make a fantastic father and he and Sherry will make a great home. I proud of and for them … best wishes and congratulations brother!
Ok, I’m done for tonight … I’ve had reports out the YANG! I’m gonna try to get a little rest. We start 4 day tomorrow andwill attend our local St. Patty’s Day Parade on Saturday. I’ll check back as soon as possible.
Thanks as always for reading and following. Please remember to hit the “share” or “like” tabs on Face Book and/or to “Tweet” me on Twitter.
Stay Safe and in house!
Captain Wines