Toronto firefighters thought they were responding to a “routine†car fire on the cold afternoon of Feb. 26, 2006, but what followed was anything but – and it was all captured on film.
Toronto-based freelance photographer John Hanley responded to the scene after radio reports indicated the car was in fact inside an underground garage attached to the home in Toronto’s affluent Forest Hill neighborhood.
First-arriving Pumper 135 found a fully involved vehicle inside the garage and observed smoke filling the house. Fire Alarm had increased the response to a full first alarm moments earlier and, based on Pumper 135’s arrival report, upgraded the fire to a working fire response, bringing a heavy squad, rapid intervention team pumper and an air-light unit.
The initial attack using a pre-connected 1½-inch line from Pumper 135’s tank was successful in knocking down the heavy fire, but the pump operator soon discovered the hydrant in front of the house directly across the street was faulty and the tank soon ran dry.
Additional companies were now arriving on the scene. A second hydrant was located and lines were stretched to attack the fire. Crews from Aerial 135 and Rescue 341 initiated a primary search of the house, which now was showing a medium smoke condition. Things then started to happen quickly.
Without warning, heavy fire conditions appeared on the first floor and the front hallway quickly became fully involved. Fire raced up the stairs and cut off the crew’s only method of egress. They had very little time to escape the fast-moving flames, so they entered a front bedroom, broke out the window and began, one by one, to climb out onto a small snow- and ice-covered dormer roof.
Within moments, the fire was entering the room and the roof was getting crowded. As the interior conditions became untenable, the last of the five firefighters made his way through the window onto the roof. As colleagues rushed a line and a ground ladder to the front of the house, one of the men fell from the roof, landing on one of his rescuers. All other members made it down the ground ladder to safety as the second floor became well involved.
The whole sequence of events occurred in less than two minutes. A quick personnel accountability report (PAR) indicated all remaining members were accounted for. The fire soon escalated to a third alarm, bringing a total commitment of 11 pumpers, three aerials, one heavy rescue, one hazardous materials unit and the air-light unit.
Three firefighters suffered injuries, the most serious being the captain who broke the fall of the firefighter who fell from the roof. He suffered a fractured cheekbone and numerous abrasions. The others suffered minor burns. The fact that all members wore full personal protection undoubtedly contributed to the lack of serious injuries.
The fire was brought under control in a little more than an hour and damage was estimated at $750,000. A city investigation is underway as it was reported that the Waterworks had previously been notified by neighbors that the hydrant across from the fire was inoperative.
Keith Hanley is a senior news videographer for CTV News in Toronto. He has been covering the activities of the Toronto Fire Department for more than 35 years. John Hanley is a Toronto-based fire photographer. He owns and maintains the website www.torontofirepics.com.
