Oct. 30 has long been labeled "Hell Night" in many communities, due to the extraordinary number of serious fires that have traditionally occurred on the day before Halloween. However, Feb. 22 may now be considered "Hell Day" in North Carolina for much the same reason. The 24-hour period that set records for high temperatures also spawned four incidents that between them left five people dead, destroyed or damaged 50 structures, and burned more than 860 acres. Accompanying the unseasonably mild 74-degree weather were gusty winds up to 33 mph and 14% relative humidity, all of which factored heavily in two of the calls.
Shortly before sunrise, Durham firefighters were dispatched to a fire in a single-family residence on Grant Street that resulted in the death of two children. For departments across the state, it was an ominous start to what would be a memorable day. In McDowell County, a brushfire covering 700 hundred acres caused the evacuation of at least 15 homes and continued burning throughout the night. At around 3 P.M., units in Hoke County responded to a grass and woods fire that has been attributed to the backyard burning of trash. Before the fire was brought under control, multiple departments were operating at the scene and a dozen homes were involved. These were just two of 130 wildfires that broke out in North Carolina that day.
Around the same time, at 2:54, first-due Raleigh companies were enroute to a fire in an occupied multiple dwelling at 305 Roselle Court on the east side of the city. There were reports of possible explosions, and crews encountered a working fire on arrival. A second alarm was transmitted shortly thereafter. One juvenile and two adult victims were found inside the building; however, it was subsequently ruled that the deaths were the result of a murder-suicide and were not caused by the fire.
At 3:03 P.M., telecommunicators at the Raleigh-Wake Emergency Communications Center dispatched Engine 19 to a grass fire at 3500 Capital Blvd., a shopping center on a major north-south commercial roadway through the city. One minute later, Engine 27 was assigned to a brushfire on Old Buffaloe Road, a cross street in the same general vicinity. This was followed by a full-first-structural alarm to one of the many reports then being received. Engines 7, 9 and 22, Ladder 16, Rescue 19 and Battalion 1 were now also enroute.
At 3:12, Raleigh Battalion 4 declared a "major working fire," which added Engines 6, 16, 4 and 18, Ladders 26 and 23, and another battalion chief to the call. A third alarm was struck six minutes later, summoning Engines 14, 25 and 15 and Ladder 22. The incident commander now had 12 engines, four ladders and a rescue at his disposal. He was going to need them. The actual scene of the fire was the Pine Knoll Townes subdivision immediately to the rear (west) of the shopping center at 3500 Capital Boulevard.
As the name suggests, Pine Knoll Townes is a townhome community composed of two-story attached single-family residences. Construction is conventional wood frame with composite shingles and vinyl siding. Units were in varying stages of completion, ranging from fully occupied to just recently begun. Upon arrival, firefighters found eight units already heavily involved, a massive plume of black smoke and gusty winds from the west that were whipping the flames into what could be best described as a firestorm. Half-finished buildings left plenty of openings for fire spread, and the dense occupancy, narrow streets and small setbacks typical of townhomes added to the concerns. As dictated by these conditions, a defensive strategy was immediately employed, including the use of elevated master streams to protect exposures.
At 3:21, an additional call for a brushfire on Capital Boulevard was received, and at 3:22, a 911 call was received for a house fire on Binghampton Court. The latter turned out to be located within the complex, and the units from both incidents — Engines 21, 2, 26, 8, Ladder 20, and Car 5 — were reassigned to the Pine Knoll alarm. Shortly thereafter, at 3:28, the fourth and final alarm was struck, sending Engines 5, 10 and 20, Ladder 1 and Air 8 to the scene. By this time, fire had jumped the street, and buildings on the east and west side of Oneonta Court, as well as those in the rear yard, were ablaze.
Wake County EMS established a triage and rehab presence on the scene through the assignment of eight units, and Raleigh police provided crowd control. Because of the density and direction of the smoke, there were several traffic problems to contend with, especially during the normally heavy afternoon drive time. Operations from the initial command post were transferred to the department's command unit as the blaze was brought under control, and the American Red Cross was notified to assist with the relocation of displaced families.
Because of the heavy demand placed upon resources by concurrent fires, mutual aid was summoned from neighboring communities. Bay Leaf, Cary, Durham Highway, Falls, Garner, Knightdale, New Hope, Rolesville and Wake Forest all covered depleted Raleigh stations until about 10 P.M. Falls and New Hope also sent units to the scene. Assisting with overhaul were 29 recruits from the Raleigh Fire Department's training academy who were nearing graduation. Barry's Cafe from Cary provided canteen service free of charge to emergency workers, who all appreciated the well-needed break.
By the time the operation was complete, 38 homes had been damaged or destroyed and 60 people had to find alternate housing. Numerous vehicles were also destroyed. More than 30 911 calls had been received regarding the incident, including some with conflicting locations, and others that contained difficulties in pronouncing some of the street names involved. Wake County is one of the faster growing areas of the United States, with many common street names already taken. The number of townhomes alone has doubled in the last five years; itself placing a significant strain on the dwindling supply.
Several veteran Raleigh firefighters labeled this as the biggest incident and busiest day of their careers. In the four-hour period surrounding this event, Raleigh units responded to alarms at the rate of one every four minutes, including more than a dozen reported or confirmed structure fires. Walt Fuller, deputy director of 911, described the afternoon as the worst he had ever seen outside of a natural disaster.
Although the Pine Knoll development met building code, the City of Raleigh has commissioned a study to determine whether future improvements are needed. The cause of the fire has been determined to be a carelessly discarded cigarette that began a grass fire that almost immediately communicated to structures under construction. Problems were encountered with one dry hydrant, but generally water supply was adequate throughout the blaze, and extensive use was made of large-diameter hose and master streams. While damage was significant, given the weather and fire conditions upon arrival, it would have been much worse had a coordinated attack not been quickly mounted.
Prior to the advent of President's Day, Feb. 22 was traditionally celebrated as Washington's Birthday. For firefighters throughout North Carolina, Feb. 22, 2007, was certainly no holiday.
BARRY FUREY, a Firehouse® contributing editor, is director of the Raleigh-Wake County Emergency Communications Center in North Carolina. During his 35-year public safety career, he has managed 911 centers and served as a volunteer fire officer in three other states. In 2002, Furey chaired the Association of Public-safety Communications Officials International (APCO) conference in Nashville, TN, and in 2005 he received an APCO life membership for his continued work in emergency communications.
