Townsend, MA, Feb. 4, 2019—Crews battled a four-alarm fire in a four-story brick garden-style apartment building. The fire started in a second-floor bathroom and spread throughout the structure, ultimately breaking through the roof. Crews faced water supply issues and had to call for mutual-aid tankers from several communities, and also draft from a nearby pond. It took approximately 100 firefighters more than four hours to extinguish the fire.
Photo by David Bryce
Elmwood Park, NJ, Jan. 30, 2019—Elmwood Park Fire Department crews fought a huge fire at the landmark Marcal Paper Mills facility. The first chief officer on scene reported heavy smoke conditions and requested a third alarm. Companies attempted to locate the seat of the fire, and within 15 minutes, Command reported heavy fire through the roof and embers landing on buildings and homes across the street, prompting the request of a fourth alarm. In less than an hour, all members were evacuated and switched to an exterior attack. Just over an hour into the fire, the fifth alarm was transmitted. A drafting site was set up with engines drafting from the Passaic River. The wind and subzero temperatures spread the fire and froze water in the hoses and pumps. The fire eventually spread to most of the buildings within the confines of the complex, including a large four-story mill that held the famous Marcal Paper sign; however, companies were able to protect the main production building, the complex’s power plant and several other buildings. After 24 hours, companies were being rotated into the fire scene, Command reported they still had numerous deep-seated fires in the rubble and a demolition crew was attempting to pull apart rubble.
Photo by Peter Danzo
Port Carbon, PA, Feb. 2, 2019—A second alarm was requested as Port Carbon firefighters arrived on scene to find heavy fire throughout a middle-of-the-row residence on Pike. A blitz attack was immediately initiated before firefighters began to make an interior attack. Firefighters worked inside for almost 30 minutes before they were evacuated due to deteriorating conditions and rapid fire spread. The fire eventually climbed to a third alarm, and a tanker task force was brought in to supplement the municipal water supply. Over two dozen companies from all areas of Schuylkill County responded to the incident.
Photo by JC Kriesher
San Antonio, TX, Feb. 18, 2019—San Antonio fire companies battled a fire in a mixed-occupancy building that housed a taco shop, private residences, a tire/mechanic shop, a fence/welding shop, and storage units. Crews used multiple handlines and multiversals to extinguish the blaze.
Photo by Zackery Newton
