SEPT. 1: WESTFIELD, NJ – At least two of the six stores at a strip mall were damaged and there was a partial roof collapse to the structure as crews battled a four-alarm blaze.
SEPT. 19: PLACERVILLE, CA – A man was arrested and charged with deliberately starting a fast-growing wildfire that drove nearly 2,800 people from their homes. The blaze put a dozen firefighters in danger, forcing them to deploy their fire shields. They all escaped unharmed. The fire was fueled by the state’s third straight year of drought conditions.
SEPT. 29: OCALA, FL – Seven units, a battalion chief and a safety officer responded to a mobile home to find smoke and fire showing from the exterior of the structure. Two rooms of the double-wide mobile home were engulfed in flames. Firefighters divided into crews so that one group could combat the flames and search for occupants inside, while the others secured the exterior. The fire was completely extinguished within 25 minutes of arrival. No injuries were sustained, as the home was unoccupied at the time.
OCT. 8: CORAM, NY – Approximately 60 firefighters from area departments responded to a structure fire at a condominium complex with multiple dwellings. Selden Fire Department operated using new self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) that it had taken delivery of on the previous day. The call served as a quick test for the new equipment, which will serve to help firefighters stay safe and efficient.
Thanks to contributors: Don Bain, Jay K. Bradish, Ashley Lopez and Michael Loughran.
