Apartment fire displaces 73 residents

It always happens when I’m the acting Battalion around the 4th of July. Actually, the date really doesn’t matter. I seem to be a magnet for fires and large incidents whenever I ride the Battalion. This cycle has been no exception!

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smoke showingOur first day of the cycle (Thursday) we had a significant fire on the South Side which injured 3 firefighters and caused an estimated $225,000.00 in damages. The injuries were minor and all 3 members returned to duty this morning. You can read about (and see pictures) of that fire by clicking HERE .

Today, my first run came before 8am and Engine #2 marked a working fire, with smoke showing from the station.

Gandy fireCaptain Graham and 1st Lt. Croft got their crews (E2/L2) in there and made a quick knock down on the fire.

There was more fire outside of the apartment than extended in so their quick actions saved property and possibly lives.

It wasn’t what I’d call a “significant” fire (although I’m sure it was to the resident) but it also wasn’t the way I wanted to start the day.

attack line BurkOf course it really doesn’t matter what I “wanted” because my 2nd run of the day came shortly after and it too was a working fire.

This time, it was another job on the South Side.

This time, it was a 3 story apartment building. The fire was located on the ground level in the center of the building.

Captains Dean Russell (E4) and Todd Stone (E5) along with their crews put a quick knock on the fire after Ladder 7  forced entry.

Burk fireAgain, getting an attack line into service quickly and efficiently resulted in the saving of lives and property.

The fire was held to the room of origin but a couple units sustained water damage while the entire building suffered smoke damage.

Due to some of the utilities being affected, all the residents of the building (73 of them) were displaced.

packing hose BurkThe Red Cross assisted our Emergency Management team in establishing / opening a shelter for the residents in a near by high school.

An interesting note from this fire is that all 3 of the members injured on Thursday’s fire were back on duty and on scene of this incident.

Both fires were under control before lunch time and then things calmed down for a while.

Of course that wouldn’t last long. This evening, I took in a possible extrication with Station #5 (the station the Battalion runs out of) and got in a fight with a bus driver (I’ll tell ya that story in another post). The boys ran their first GSW (Gun Shot Wound) of the night before 10pm. and it’s early yet. It’s early and we still have another tour on Monday before catching our 4 day break.

Who knows what we’ll run into next…. North West “Noke” on a Saturday night in July!

Thanks as always for following along. I have some decent posts to share with ya in the next couple of days so be sure to keep checking back. Thanks as well for following along on our other Social Media outlets. I’m excited to say that I’ve reached the max 5,000 fans on my “personal” Face Book profile but for those of you sending “friend request” or wanting to follow me; please do so by following my “Fan Page”. Just use the link below, “like” and select “get notifications”.

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Stay SAFE and in House!

Captain Wines