Firewhirl: Incidents Archives

Bridge Weight Limits Stop Fire Department

Firefighters in Nebraska encountered a bridge that was unsafe to cross with their apparatus enroute to a structure fire (from Firehouse.com).

The Bellevue Volunteer Fire Department was called to the fire around 9:15 a.m. But firefighters couldn't cross the wood plank bridge over a frosty stretch of Papillion Creek because of a weight restriction.

...

The department's firetrucks weigh 23 tons or more, he said. The bridge, near Fairview Road just east of the Kennedy Freeway, has a posted weight restriction of 1 ton.

Safety questions:
Does your department check bridge weight limits in your jurisdiction?
If your department was in the situation described in the article would your trucks have been driven across the bridge?

This wouldn't have been an easy decision, but I think the Bellevue VFD firefighters made the right call.

Pickup Fire Magnesium Explosion

Check out the cool video of a magnesium explosion at a pickup fire over at Roanoke Firefighters.

I think I'll try to show this video at our next fire meeting to encourage our firefighters to wear proper PPE at vehicle fires.

Questions for Firewhirl readers:
1) Is it standard procedure in your department to wear SCBA at vehicle fires?
2) Should it be standard procedure to wear SCBA at vehicle fires?

Just send your answers to me via email at joe@northernplainsfire.com.

Camp Victory Firefighters in Iraq

Here are some interesting pictures of firefighters based at Camp Victory in Iraq (from thetension.blogspot.com). They responded to a fire caused by a rocket attack.

Highway Scene Safety

Here is an interesting article about a deputy fire chief and a state trooper disagreeing about scene safety on a highway (from dailyrecord.com via FireFighterCloseCalls.com).

ROCKAWAY TWP. -- A deputy fire chief was arrested and held in handcuffs for two hours Sunday night following an argument with a New Jersey State Police trooper after the firefighter refused to move a fire truck that was blocking the right lane of Route 80.

Read the whole article. It isn't too long and has a lot of interesting details about what happened.

The most important point that I took from this incident is that a good relationship with law enforcement is critical to scene safety. Something that I'm going to look into in my jurisdiction is who has the authority to close traffic lanes at an MVC. A little preplanning could save a lot of heartache.

Market Fire in Guatemala Kills at Least 15

Tragic fire destroys market and lives in Guatemala City, Guatemala (from FOXNews.com).

GUATEMALA CITY — An enormous fire at Central America's largest open-air market Monday killed 15 people, including three minors, and sent up columns of smoke visible six miles away. Witnesses said the blaze was sparked by a lit cigarette.

The fire broke out in an area of illegal fireworks stands set up temporarily near a section of the permanent market where corn and beans are sold year-round, said fire department spokesman Ricardo Lemus, who confirmed the number of deaths.

Someone was extremely stupid - first to operate an illegal fireworks booth in a crowded market and second, for smoking cigarettes near their illegal fireworks booth. Sheesh!

On another note, there is an interesting picture of the Guatemalan firefighters at FOXNews. Just follow the link above.

Wildfire Updates

With wildfire season picking up the following sites are excellent resources for getting updated information:

NIFC National Fire News
This report gives an overall view of the fire situation nation-wide. It includes updates on all large wildland fires.

InciWeb
Updates on large wildland fires and the reports may include pictures, maps, and more in-depth information.

State of Emergency in Nevada

Nevada is burning up (from FOXNews.com).

RENO, Nev. — Gov. Kenny Guinn declared a state of emergency as state and federal crews put practically every available piece of equipment on the lines to combat dozens of lightning-sparked fires that have burned 125 square miles of Nevada.

More than 1,000 firefighters on Wednesday were battling dozens of fires, from a 57,000-acre blaze burning out of control largely in uninhabited rangeland in northeast Nevada to a complex of a dozen smaller fires around Reno and Carson City that forced evacuations at the town of Mound House along the historic Pony Express Trail.

The wildfire season has been picking up gradually since the big grass fires in Oklahoma and Texas were extinguished earlier this year. As far as I know, the Nevada fires are putting the first real strain on the firefighting system since then.

Big Bushfire in Namibia

A large bushfire in Namibia, Africa, has been burning for a week. The article details what kind of equipment they have for fighting this fire. It isn't much. Here is an excerpt (from allAfrica.com):

By yesterday morning, the fire had swept through 500,000 hectares of land, ruining large quantities of both harvested and unharvested crops while large tracts of prime grazing areas were simply reduced to ashes and thick clouds of smoke rose into the air.

500,000 hectares converts to 1,235,526 acres - big fire!

Those involved in the efforts to put out the fire have been unable to do so because they were only equipped with two tanks with capacities of 5 000-litres and 6,000-litres that can only be mounted on a trailer pulled by either a tractor or a truck, while villagers also tried in vain to use freshly-chopped tree branches.

Other fire-fighting equipment in the hands of forestry officials at Katima Mulilo, are four mobile water tanks that each can be filled with a maximum of 3,000 litres of the liquid.

He says the tractor is too slow and inadequate for such a challenging task, while the only truck, a 6x6 Mercedes Benz truck suitable for such emergencies was sent to Windhoek in 2002 for repairs but has yet to be fixed because of financial constraints.

This shows just how lucky we are. I can't imagine trying to extinguish a 1.2 million acre fire with a handful of broken down trucks and water tanks on trailers.

Here is some info on Namibia for those that are interested.

Smoke Turns Out to be Insect Swarm

This would be something to see (from The Hamilton Spectator via FireFightingNews.com):

Lovesick bugs looking for mates sent Hamilton firefighters scrambling to battle a reported high-rise apartment fire recently.

When two pumpers, ladder, rescue vehicle and a district chief rolled up in front of the building on Delawana Drive a week ago, they found the "smoke at the top floor" was a cloud of millions of insects swarming over one corner of the roof.

Fire safety officer John Verbeek says this could be a first for the fire department.

"I've never heard of a building fire call where it turned out to be a mass of insects."

Whoa - that is a lot of bugs. I hope they had their insect repellent handy.

Planes Used On Istanbul Airport Fire

Check out this photo of an air tanker dropping water on the big airport fire yesterday in Istanbul, Turkey.

Photo courtesy of the AP.

Here are some details from the Washington Post.

ISTANBUL, Turkey -- A quick-spreading fire burned down most of the cargo section of Istanbul's Ataturk International Airport on Wednesday, forcing 2,000 workers to flee the thick black smoke that closed one runway to traffic and disrupted flights.

...

Firefighting planes filled with water from the nearby Marmara Sea made more than 70 sorties to douse the flames, flying low and at an angle to avoid a nearby Turkish Airlines building. Dozens of fire trucks also responded, and the blaze was brought under control after more than four hours.

That is the first time I've heard of air tankers being used on a structure fire.

Forest Fire Damages Chichen Itza Building

We watch the Discovery Channel quite a bit, and I've seen a couple of programs about Chichen Itza. It seems that a fire has damaged some buildings there (from FireFightingNews.com).

Forest fire in Mexico has charred 5,800 hectares in the state of Yucatan on Mexico's Caribbean coast, damaging the ancient cities of Chichen Itza and Oxtankah, the country's National History and Anthropology Institute (INAH) said on Sunday. The INAH chief, Federica Sodi Miranda, said that the agency had already begun work to establish the fire's impact on the ancient buildings. She said that in Chichen Itza, which is 180 km west of tourist resort Cancun, fires had damaged a fourth century building which had not been completely excavated, where INAH anthropologists and archeologists had been working.

Fires also hit Oxtancah, the fourth century Mayan market city, around 9 km from Chichen Itza, damaging a building in the northern area.

For a little background info, here is a link to Chichen Itza at Wikipedia.

Rollover at Apartment Fire

Here is an interesting story about a rollover that occurred at an apartment fire (from My Dark Little Corner of Cyberspace).

The 2nd in engine got there and the 2 senior firemen and the captain went to the door to go in with the probie already on the nozzle who was waiting. As soon as they opened the door and made entry, the smoke conditions changed rapidly, from light grey to dark black. This indicates the fire is taking off and conditions are deterororating inside. About a minute later, one of the front windows was broken out (we later found out by accident) and things really went south. The fire got a huge gulp of fresh air, and rolled over.

Follow the link to read the whole thing.

Florida Fire Forces 1,000 to Evacuate

About 1,000 Florida residents have been evacuated from their homes due to a brush fire (from FOXNEWS.com).

MIAMI — Smoldering brush fires kept about 1,000 people from their homes early Monday, and the heavy smoke shut down parts of Interstate 95 between Daytona Beach and the Cape Canaveral area.

At least one home was destroyed and about 1,000 acres scorched by the fires that began Friday and flared up through the weekend, officials said.

I've never been involved with an evacuation of that size, but moving 1,000 people can't be easy.

Follow Up on Toronto Fire

Photo: John Hanley

Remember the fire pictures from the house fire in Toronto, Canada, where the firefighters were escaping from a second story window onto a dormer? This incident is going to be featured on the cover of Firehouse magazine. Here is an article from Firehouse.com with more details of the incident along with pictures and video.

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.

After looking at all of the pictures this next statement really puts things into perspective:

The whole sequence of events occurred in less than two minutes.

Whoa - that is fast and the firefighters did a good job of getting out and avoiding serious injuries or fatalities.

I'm looking forward to seeing the article in the magazine.

The photographer, John Hanley, has a website of his fire photos called Toronto Fire Pics. Good pictures - check it out.

Pictures of Chinese Wildland Firefighters

Here is an article from CRIENGLISH.com about a forest fire in China that was extinguished recently. What caught my attention was the pictures of the firefighters.

Photo: Xinhua

Interesting camouflage pattern on their clothing. I wonder what the little boxes on their helmets are? The nozzle looks familiar too.

There are a couple of other pictures from the article - one of a couple of firefighters with what looks like a leaf blower, and another of two trucks.

LAFD Successfully Handles Hospital Fire

A fire in a hospital, nursing home, or elderly housing unit would be a real challenge. The Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a fire in a hospital yesterday and they did a great job (from LAFD News & Information).

Ascending to the fourth floor via the stairways, Firefighters encountered a considerable amount of heavy smoke banked down below waist in the hallway leading to the fire room.

Using handlines, Firefighters aggressively attacked the fire confining it to the one room and preventing fire spread to other portion of the floor. The fire was extinguished in approximately twenty minutes.

Due to pre-existing medical condition of many patients in the Medical Center, most were immediately evacuated to a treatment area on the first floor by Firefighters for assessment and as a safety precaution. Others were sheltered in place until the incident was completely under control and then assessed.

No injuries and limited structural damages. Read the whole thing and follow the links to see video. The list of responding units is pretty impressive too.

Poor Decision Regarding Snake Removal

I'm not sure what to say about this incident (from ABC News).

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. May 3, 2006 (AP)— After being told by her apartment complex management that it was not their responsibility to remove a snake for her porch, a woman set the reptile on fire and caused $1,000 damage to vinyl siding.

This woman is lucky the apartment complex didn't burn down. What was she thinking?

Big Fire in Brooklyn

Firefighters in Brooklyn were busy yesterday with a very large structure fire (from WABC-TV).

More than 400 firefighters converged on yesterday's fiery scene at a former rope factory.

The 10 alarm fire eventually engulfed 15 buildings, making it the largest in New York City in a decade, excluding "9/11".

Photo courtesy of WABC-TV.

The story notes that the site covers 21 acres!

Lots of pictures - just follow the link.

New Highway Safety Campaign - Shoot the Deer

This over at 43 Firefighter made me chuckle:

Station 43 was dispatched to a reported car vs. pole on Bunny Lane near Effort Neola Road. Driver was not injured. Appears this accident was caused by either a 14 point buck, a moose or something in between which caused the car to leave the roadway. The driver received a ride from from the Pennsylvania State Police. The driver also requested that we shoot all deer that we see so this doesn't happen to anyone else.

Hehehe, after a couple of beers the "shoot the deer" idea would probably seem like a good one, but apparently in this case, the state police didn't think so.

View the pictures of the incident here.

Big First Day for Escondido Firefighter

This guy had a big first day as a firefighter (from the San Diego Union-Tribune via Firehouse.com).

ESCONDIDO – Not many people can say they've rescued someone from a burning building. Even fewer can say they did it on their first day on the job.

Yesterday morning, Dominick Polito, a firefighter/paramedic with the Escondido Fire Department, did just that.

He pulled to safety a baby and a woman from the second story of an apartment building on fire.

...

When firefighters arrived, they saw the woman leaning out a window, holding her baby out to get it away from the smoke. “It appeared she was getting ready to jump,” Rea said.

Firefighters extended a ladder to the upstairs apartment to help her out.

Polito climbed up the steps and rescued the two, first the baby, then the mother, Rea said. Firefighters extinguished the blaze in 20 minutes.

Kudos to Firefighter Polito!

Boys Arrested for Florida Fires

Florida firefighters were busy on Sunday fighting brush fires that destroyed a number of homes (from The Washington Post).

LEHIGH ACRES, Fla. -- Two boys were charged Sunday with setting weekend brush fires that have destroyed or damaged more than two dozen homes and burned more than 1,500 acres in southwest Florida, authorities said.

...

At least nine homes and four sheds were destroyed, and an unknown number of other homes suffered some type of damage, said Gerry LaCavera, wildfire mitigation specialist with the Florida Division of Forestry.

Another 30 vehicles, from all-terrain vehicles to cars and boats, also were lost.

The fires also destroyed two fire trucks, and killed several pets, Forrest said. "I'm aware we lost one goat and a couple dogs," he said.

Things didn't go well if two fire trucks were burned up. It would be interesting to hear what happened to cause the loss of the trucks. If I see something on it I'll post it.

Dog Starts Fire

Skylar, a dog in Naperville, IL, went after some leftover pizza and accidentally started a fire (from The Chicago Tribune).

On his way out the door, Haines did not notice the leftover pizza on the stove.

But Skylar did.

Fire officials said that as the dog reached to get at the leftovers, a paw turned a burner knob to the "light" position.

The burner ignited cardboard, which set fire to a nearby cutting board. From there, the fire crept up the kitchen wall.

Oops. Luckily the fire was caught early and put out. Skylar was resuscitated with an oxygen mask designed for pets.

Tennessee Firefighters Deal with Storm

Thunderstorm safety procedures aren't just for wildland firefighting. Check this story from myEyewitnessNews.com about a fire in Bartlett, TN.

Two Bartlett businesses are destroyed by fire, and firefighters weren’t just fighting the flames. They were fighting Mother Nature too.

Flames shot into the air during a thunderstorm Tuesday night. The storm was so intense firefighters had to stop work twice and get to safety. Dixie Flooring is now just a pile of rubble.

...

“One of our firefighters was just stepping off the truck when it was hit by lightning,” said a firefighter.

Luckily the firefighter wasn’t hurt, but the jolt disabled the truck and left one ladder useless.

At times the weather was so bad, firefighters had to stop the hoses and wait around for things to clear out. Firefighters say when the tornado sirens went off they broke out the window of the “Love Worth Finding” ministries next door to the flooring business to take cover.

Rain, lightening, and tornado sirens all at a structure fire. That would keep the safety officer on his toes.

There is a news video report too - just follow the link.

Nude Dude Stuck in Chimney

Too funny (from FireFightingNews.com).

California - Santa Claus he was not. "The capper of this whole thing is that he didn't have a stitch of clothes on, not even a sock." That is what Hayward Lt. Gary Branson said of a man who became stuck in a chimney about 2:30 a.m. Saturday while trying to get into a house he was locked out of.

...

Though it was not easy getting him out, Branson said. They tried holding a rescuer upside down from the top of the chimney, but that did not work.

Finally, a firefighter went inside the house and lay on his back near the fireplace. He used the bottoms of his feet to push Urbano's feet up toward the top of the chimney, where firefighters were able to pull him out.

Hehehe - Read the whole thing.

U.K. Firefighters Fight Moorland Fire

I'm always curious about how firefighters from other countries go about putting out fires. Here is an article from a website called This is Lancashire regarding a fire in the moors in the U.K.

FIREFIGHTERS spent six hours battling a moorland blaze as high winds blew flames towards a farm.

...

Geoff Harris, of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, said: "Three crews were originally called to the scene, but immediately radioed for backup when they saw the size of the fire.

"It covered approximately one square mile of land.

...

They were forced to leave their engines nearby and walk to the scene of the fire, which was not accessible by road.

Crews used special spade-like instruments to beat the fire out. It destroyed 20 acres of grassland.

Keep in mind that newspapers don't usually get many details about the suppression efforts. However, check out the picture that was included with the article. I've been told that swatting just makes you tired and that it is better to drag fire swatters or spades slowly over the fire to smother it. Also, swatting can spread embers more easily.

Those are picky details. They put the fire out and the article doesn't mention that anyone got hurt, so everything turned out fine.

Charges Dropped in Firefighter Brawl

This from Firehouse.com:

Authorities have decided not to prosecute three local volunteer firemen, despite a brawl that broke out among firefighters two months ago as a house was burning in Prince George's County.

The fire department filed criminal charges against all three. Now those charges will be dropped.

There is lots of info in the article.

Hopefully, the fire departments will take the appropriate disciplinary action against the firefighters. Fighting on the fire ground is unacceptable.

Fire near Moscow Kills 11

Eleven construction workers were killed in a fire near Moscow, Russia (from the BBC).

The blaze broke out early in the morning at a cabin where workers were sleeping at a construction site in the town of Pavshinskaya Poima.

Firefighters found the bodies when they put out the fire. The victims died from smoke inhalation, officials quoted by Russian media said.

It is difficult to get any details on these international incidents. I searched through several news stories, but none of them had any information about how the fire started or why the workers were unable to escape. Firefighters from every country could benefit from this information. It would allow us to improve the fire services we offer in our own countries.

Alabama Station Blaze

I'm a little slow on this story, but the fire station for a small, volunteer department in Alabama burned down (from Firehouse.com).

We not only lost our fire station, we also lost our one and only fire engine," Hay Valley's Fire Chief Jeff Carr said Saturday after the blaze been extinguished. "We also lost all the equipment that we had on the engine at the time of the fire."

...

"We're a small department. We operate on a budget of about $6,000 a year," Carr said. "And that's if we have a good year. All of our money comes from donations. Even the engine we lost was donated. Saragossa's Volunteer Fire Department had donated it to us because we were having problems with the one we had and we didn't have the funds to buy a another one. And I don't know what we're going to do now."

If you can, lend a hand.

Prescribed Fire Burns Down Cabins

Prescribed fire is a great tool in reducing fuels and improving forest habitat. However, something went wrong with this incident in Wyoming (from the Billings Gazette).

LANDER -- While angry homeowners accused the U.S. Forest Service of incompetence, firefighters worked Tuesday to contain a prescribed burn that escaped containment lines and destroyed four cabins in a rugged, scenic area of central Wyoming.

The Forest Service started the prescribed burn Saturday outside a cabin subdivision near Sinks Canyon State Park and completed it on Sunday, Shoshone National Forest Fire Information Officer Ben Cramer said.

Cramer said strong winds stoked the fire on Monday and blew it into the subdivision that borders the forest and contains 30 to 35 mostly seasonal vacation homes and cabins.

Two issues stand out on this incident.

First, when a prescribed fire is near structures, extra measures must be taken to make sure the fire doesn't damage the buildings. This means that additional units should be held in reserve strictly for structure protection. Engines should be on scene at all times until the prescribed fire is extinguished.

Second, the prescribed fire was started on Saturday. The fire escaped control lines and burned the cabins on Monday. In a two day period, the fire suppression forces should have mopped up the fire to a point that it would not escape.

We will have to wait for the investigation to publish their report to get the details, but I'm guessing that the U.S. Forest Service did not adequately address the two issues I point out above.

If the U.S. Forest Service wants to continue to use prescribed fire as a tool, they have to quit burning down people's houses.

50 Killed in Trade Fair Blaze

At least 50 people were killed in a fire at a trade fair in India (from The Hindu).

Meerut: At least 50 persons, mostly women and children, died and more than 100 were injured in a fire, which tore through a consumer goods fair at the Victoria Park here on Monday evening.

The fire, suspected to have been caused by short-circuiting, broke out in one of the stalls around 5.30 p.m. when there were an estimated 2,000 visitors at the `Brand India' fair, where multinationals displayed electronic goods and kitchen appliances.

The article didn't have many details, but I'll update this post if I find out anything else about the incident. There was one photo that accompanied the article.

This makes me think about what would happen in the U.S. if a fire started at one of the multitude of trade shows that take place every year.

UPDATE: Here is a story from the Washington Post with a few more details.

Witnesses described a horrific scene, with screaming injured people, three enormous tents destroyed, and rescuers pulling out corpse after corpse. Authorities said most of the corpses were found near the exits.

"Apparently some people were knocked down and crushed in the stampede as they rushed to get out of the inferno," said Rajiv Sabharwal, senior police superintendent for the town.

Tents and fire don't mix. I seem to remember reading about a tent fire in the U.S. that killed a number of people. If I remember right, that incident resulted in some new laws forcing tent makers to use fire resistent materials.

Were the tents in the Meerut incident manufactured with fire resistant materials?

911 Call Considered Prank; Woman Dies

This is heart wrenching (from ClickOnDetroit.com via EMSResponder.com):

DETROIT -- A 6-year-old boy's 911 call for help was thought to be a prank, but the call was real and the boy's mother died, Local 4 reported.

...

Kimberly Harris, the union president of AFSCME Local 1023, said more than a quarter of phone calls received by 911 operators are prank calls.

There is lots more info at ClickOnDetroit.com.

The area that I live in has few 911 calls just because of a small population base. Every 911 call is investigated by our local police department, even if the call seems to be a prank or a hang-up.

However, if an area that gets thousands of 911 calls per day, prank calls are a serious issue. Police cannot be sent to "prank" calls or hang-ups because of the sheer volume of calls.

So what is the answer? Serious consequences for prank calls should be enforced. Big fines and community service for first time offenders and jail time for repeat offenders.

Oops! Frying Fish Cause Fire Station Blaze

Geez...somebody is going to get their rear kicked for this (from katv.com).

Pine Bluff (AP) - Firefighters at a Pine Bluff station left fish frying on a stove when they rushed out to answer a call. The result is that the kitchen at Fire Station Number Seven was gutted by the fire that resulted Wednesday evening.

At least the whole place didn't burn down.

Texas Wildfires Torch Nine Homes

Texas had to deal with more wildland fires which ended up burning nine homes (from FOXNews.com).

AMARILLO, Texas — The parched Texas Panhandle apparently survived another wildfire scare, but forecasters predicted dangerous conditions in other parts of the state Friday.

Wildfires fueled by steady 40 mph winds scorched 27,000 acres Thursday and destroyed at least nine homes while forcing the evacuation of two small towns about 65 miles east of Amarillo.

The roughly 600 residents of Lefors and Bowers City were allowed to return home in the evening and lighter winds helped firefighters contain most of the more than two dozen blazes, officials said.

No injuries were reported.

This winter has been very difficult for the folks down in Oklahoma and Texas regarding wildland fires. At some point, the homeowners are going to need to take steps to protect their homes from these grass fires.

Firewise is a great website that has tons of info specifically for this purpose. From the website:

This web site contains educational information for people who live or vacation in fire-prone areas of the United States. It was designed to acquaint YOU with the challenges of living with wildland fire.

Check it out.

6,000 Chinese Firefighters Fight Blaze

China has 6,000 firefighters on a fire in the Yunnan Province (from CRIEnglish.com).

Some 6,000 fire fighters are battling a forest fire that is just 20 kilometers from the capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, Kunming. Spokesman for the State Forestry Administration (SFA), Cao Qingyao, said the fire, which has been burning for seven days, has scorched nearly 666.67 hectares of forest in a suburb of the city of Anning. No casualties have been reported. The official said that while the western front of the fire has been brought under control, it has spread with amazing speed to the eastern part of the forest, which is only 20 kilometers from Kunming. The fire fighters are cutting a 53-km-long, 50-meter-wide fire break to prevent the fire from spreading to the capital.

A quick conversion on 666 hectares is about 1,600 acres. While not a small fire, it doesn't seem big enough to warrant 6,000 firefighters. I guess it all depends on the fuels they are working in, but the article doesn't say specifically what the fuels are.

Nudist Burned While Trying to Kill Spiders

This is funny because of the situation, but I hope the guy heals up OK (from stuff.co.nz via FireFightingNews.com).

SYDNEY: A red-faced Australian nudist who tried to set fire to what he thought was a deadly funnel web spider's nest ended up with badly burnt buttocks.

The 56-year-old man was at a nudist colony near Bowral, about 100km southwest of Sydney, on Sunday when he spotted what he believed to be a funnel web spider hole.

Ambulance workers, including a helicopter crew, were called to the scene after the man poured petrol down the hole and then lit a match in an attempt to kill the offending arachnid.

"The exploding petrol fumes left the man with burns to 18 per cent of his body, on the upper leg and buttocks," the NRMA Careflight helicopter rescue service said in a statement.

I bet this is the last time he will light gasoline while naked!

Firefighters Rescue Horse

Florida firefighters show how versatile the fire service is by rescuing a horse that was stuck in the mud (from nbc-2.com).

PALM BEACH COUNTY: It took nearly a dozen firefighters and heavy equipment to get a horse back on its feet. A 32 year old Palomino was pulled from the mud after a two hour rescue effort in western Lake Worth. The animal is doing fine after a long day and few tense hours.

Great article with a video news report.

Twelve Die in South African Fire

Twelve people died in a workshop that was illegally converted to living quarters in South Africa (from the Mail & Guardian Online).

A fire in the Johannesburg city centre killed 12 people and left 33 others injured in the early hours of Wednesday, Johannesburg emergency services said.

"The cause of death of all 12 appears to be traumatic asphyxia -- they suffocated because they couldn't get out," spokesperson Malcolm Midgley said.

...

Residents threw their belongings into a passage in the building in an attempt to save them, making it difficult for themselves and others to get out.

...

Midgley said the building had one emergency and one other exit. Both were blocked.

This from a follow-up article:

Emergency services spokesperson Malcolm Midgley said the fire appeared to have started from a two-plate stove being used as a heater.

This tragedy is yet another example of the problems that arise when people can't find affordable and safe housing. Are there buildings in your district that are overcrowded and unsafe? Are these buildings inspected on a regular basis?

Some People Should Not Play with Fire

This is nuts (from the 1st Responder Broadcast Network via 43 Firefighter).

Some people should not play with fire - hehehe. This made me laugh when I saw the pictures.

Trouble on the Second Story

43 Firefighter pointed out these pictures. They are from the the Toronto Fire Department, Canada, who responded to a house fire on February 26, 2006. They had big trouble on the second story. View all of the pictures from beginning to end.

Hopefully all of the firefighters were OK.

The great thing about having these photos available is that we can all learn something from one department's experience.

Rescue Truck Hit by Train

This would increase the pucker factor (from the Glenwood Springs Post Independent).

A Burning Mountains Fire Protection District rescue truck was struck by a freight train between Silt and New Castle Saturday. The truck, driven by fireman Austin Coryell, was on a training drive Saturday around noon, said Burning Mountains Chief Brit McLin.

The truck was in the middle of the track when the train bore down on it.

“He said he thought the signal might be broken and he did not see the train until its air horn went off,” McLin said.

Coryell then sped up and the train caught the truck in the rear bumper, spinning it off the track and sending it down an embankment where it was stopped by a telephone pole.

Luckily, nobody was hurt.

Photo courtesy of the Glenwood Springs Post Independent.

Cruise Ship Fire

A fire damaged a cruise ship yesterday (from the Washington Post).

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica -- A fire apparently started by a cigarette broke out aboard a giant cruise ship early Thursday as it sailed through the moonlit Caribbean, leaving one passenger dead, 11 people injured and at least 100 rooms scorched.

The Star Princess, carrying 2,690 passengers and 1,123 crew members, bore evidence of the nighttime drama as it pulled into Montego Bay's port. About 85 exterior cabins were blackened from the fire, a stark contrast to the otherwise gleaming white exterior of the ship. Metal was twisted, evidence of the heat of the blaze.

I did some checking on cruise ship firefighting. The International Council of Cruise Lines has a brochure on cruise ship safety (pdf). Here are some highlights regarding the average cruise ship:

• Five firefighting teams on board
• Over 170 trained personnel to support the fire fighting teams
• Approximately twenty crewmembers with advanced firefighting training (The average town’s fire department usually has an average of six firefighters per station.)
• Over 6 miles of firefighting hose
• Over 16 miles of sprinkler piping
• Over 5,000 sprinkler heads onboard in every cabin and room
• Over 500 fire extinguishers
• Over 4,000 smoke detectors
• Local sounding alarms in all cabins
• Over 400 fire stations or hydrants
• Sufficient lifeboats and life rafts for everyone onboard

None of the info that I found said whether there are full-time firefighters on these ships. I'm guessing that the firefighters have other duties on the cruise ship and that firefighting is just part of their job. Regardless, there are probably worse assignments than being a firefighter on a cruise ship.

Bull Roams Fire Station

We aren't talking B.S. here (yes, we all know there is plenty of B.S. in a fire station - hehehe), we are talking about a real bull (from click2houston.com).

HOUSTON -- Firefighters are used to receiving calls about rescuing animals from trees, but they could have never imagined having seen what walked through their doors Tuesday morning, KPRC Local 2 reported.

A longhorn bull that escaped from a stable located behind Fire Station No. 23, located on Lawndale Street and Broadway Street, walked into the station at about 2 a.m.

Firefighters said the bull walked in through the station's open garage doors and took a tour.

Check out the pictures too.

Fire at Fort Branch Fire Department

Unfortunately, another fire station has burned, this one in Fort Branch, Indiana (from wndu.com).

Fort Branch, IN - Some firefighters in southern Indiana are looking for a new home, after their department went up in flames. It happened early Tuesday morning in the town of Fort Branch.

Firefighters were away from the station, responding to a fire alarm, when the blaze erupted.

When they returned, the station was completely engulfed in flames and smoke was pouring from the building.

I'm sure the fire department will need some help getting back on their feet. If you hear how the department would like to receive help, let me know and I'll post it.

Firefighters Extricate Moose

Massachusetts firefighters responded to a car versus moose MVA and had to extricate the moose (from TheBostonChannel.com via Firehouse.com).

The driver of the car, Juleigh McDowell, hit the 500-pound moose that ended up sitting upright in the car's passenger seat.

...

Condon helped to extract the moose from the car once firefighters had cut the roof off. The moose was seriously injured in the crash and was put down.

Click the link and check out the video.

Candy Factory Burns

Firefighters in Lancaster, PA, responded to a candy factory on fire (from wgal.com via Firehouse.com).

Four workers were inside the Miesse Candies factory along the 700 block of Lafayette Street when fire ripped through it around 2 p.m. A resident who lived nearby helped all of the employees get out safely. No one was hurt.

Firefighters had their hands full as they said chocolate was literally running in the street.

So, here is my question - does chocolate constitute a hazardous material and does it need to be diked so that it doesn't enter the storm sewers? Hmmm.

Wildland Fire in the U.K.

I'm sure they have plenty of wildland fires in the U.K., but we don't often hear of them. Here is a story from FireFightingNews.com about a heath fire in Poole, Dorset.

Hundreds of firefighters battled against a ferocious blaze two miles wide last night. The fire tore through 240 acres of heath land as crews fought a race against time to douse the inferno.

Rescuers said strong winds fanned the late-night fire in Poole, Dorset. Fearing the flames would be blown towards homes, they evacuated hundreds of residents.

Local councillor Geoff Allen said: "We have no indications of how the blaze started. We haven't had much rain recently and it is quite dry. Three streets were evacuated and hundreds of residents were taken to council shelters as a precaution."

More than 150 fire fighters tackled the inferno with 25 engines from Dorset and Hampshire. A police helicopter was also at the scene.

If you have any info about wildland fires in the U.K., please drop me a note. I'd be interested in finding out more about what they have to deal with.

'Perfect Storm' for Wildfires

The Houston Chronicle has printed an interview with Mark Stanford, chief of fire operations for the Texas Forest Service. They discuss the large grass fires that hit Texas recently. This is my favorite bit:

Q: What produced Sunday's history-making wildfire? Why was it so bad?

A: I would describe it as a perfect storm for extreme fire. The weather conditions and the condition of the vegetation came together in a nexus that created a force of nature much like a hurricane or tornado. These are natural disasters that are truly beyond our capability to do anything about them. The fuels, the grasses, were critically dry, and you had a combination of single-digit humidity and winds gusting to 60 mph. Our models that morning predicted flames spreading at 6 mph with 50-foot flame lengths, which is the same as a four-story building. By 1 o'clock in the afternoon, that is what we had.

Emphasis is mine.

Fifty foot flame length off of grass is some really serious fire behavior. No wonder they weren't able to stop the fires.

Department Seeks Charges Against Firefighters

Remember the incident a few weeks ago in Maryland where a fracas broke out a house fire? It looks like the firefighters involved are going to have to face the consequences for their actions (from Firehouse.com).

Prince George's County's Fire Chief and Public Safety Director promised in recent weeks, if the evidence warranted criminal charges, they'd move to get them. A month later, the decision has been made: the Fire Department is seeking criminal charges against three volunteer firefighters for a brawl that broke out on the scene of a working house fire last month.

As we've been reporting all along, the fight out on the street, in which one volunteer firefighter is seen shoving another volunteer against his truck, was not the most serious part of the allegations. What was more serious? The investigation has now determined what took place inside the burning house on Standish Drive.

Allegations that volunteers from Kentland pushed and shoved career firefighters inside the burning house, pulled off their protective gear and turned off their air tanks.

Next step is to see whether the State's Attorney will bring criminal charges. Stay tuned.

Weekend House Fires Kill 15

Two separate house fires in Tennessee and Indiana result in multiple fatalities (from Firehouse.com).

Rural house fires in Tennessee and Indiana killed 15 members of two families, and most of the victims were children, officials said.

In Evensville, six children and three adults from an extended family died on the second floor of a two-story house where they were sleeping early Saturday, officials said. The only survivor, 19-year-old Joseph Alexander, had been on the first floor when he awoke in the smoke and escaped through a window.

...

In southwestern Indiana, the charred bodies of a couple and their four children were found early Saturday in the smoldering remains of their home.

The article doesn't say if there were smoke detectors in either of the houses.

Baby Delivered and Left at Fire Station

I've read several articles where a mother has left her baby at a fire station under Safe Haven laws. This story has a new twist on this issue (from the Greeley Tribune).

FORT COLLINS -- Baby John Doe, born at a Fort Collins fire station Friday morning, remains in good condition at Poudre Valley Hospital.

A woman walked into a Fort Collins fire station about 8 a.m. Friday saying she wanted to surrender her baby. Firefighters and paramedics had no idea they would have to help deliver the baby first. Within an hour, the mother had given birth and left, refusing other treatment.

I think the Safe Haven laws are a good thing because it allows a baby to be dropped off at a fire station, police station, or hospital without repercussions. This should reduce the number of babies abandoned in unsafe conditions.

However, I don't think fire stations are the proper place for mothers to deliver their babies. The fire station is certainly better than a hotel room or some other place that doesn't have emergency medical equipment, but it isn't nearly as good as the hospital. If this gets to be a regular practice, fire departments will have to put policies in place about transporting women in labor to the hospital.

Huge Texas Wildfires

Huge grass fires raced across Texas this morning (from FOXNews.com).

GROOM, Texas — Massive wildfires raced across the dry southern plains early Monday, burning more than half a million acres in Texas, leaving at least seven people dead and injuring at least seven more.

Four people died in a chain-reaction crash on Interstate 40 east of Groom as smoke obscured the road. Three others died in fires near Borger, northeast of Amarillo.

...

The fires scorched more than 663,000 acres — more than 1,000 square miles or about two-thirds the size of Rhode Island — far eclipsing the deadly wildfires that prompted Gov. Rick Perry to declare a statewide drought disaster in January. The earlier blaze charred more than 455,000 acres, destroyed more than 340 homes and killed three people.

...

Officials weren't certain what sparked the wildfires, but wind gusting up to 55 mph and low humidity made conditions ideal for the fires to quickly spread. The parched region around Amarillo has had just three-tenths of an inch of rain since February, nearly an inch below normal, and no rain is expected for at least another week.

Over 600,000 acres in one day! That is a big fire.

I took a look at the Incident Management Situation Report from NIFC. The nationwide five year average by this time of year is 7,525 fires burning 157,635 acres. So far this year, there have been 12,949 fires burning 906,416 acres. If things don't change, this will be a busy year for firefighters.

Australian Rescuers Exposed to Asbestos

Two hundred fifty rescuers in Australia received some terrible news recently (from EMSResponder.com).

At least 250 of the state's elite emergency workers have been told they could die from exposure to lethal levels of asbestos during anti-terrorist training drills.

The personnel at risk include members of the Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) unit, who were told last week that they may have contracted life-threatening illnesses after training on a demolition site at Holsworthy Army Barracks.

The site was set up to simulate rescues in the event of a terrorist attack or natural disaster and has been regularly used by fire brigade, ambulance, police and army personnel since 2004.

It is really unfortunate because the emergency responders were just trying to prepare themselves to help others. I'm sure there will be an investigation into how this happened. I can't imagine someone setting this up on purpose, but there certainly could be some negligence involved.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the folks involved in this.

Here is a question for you: Are your training facilities safe?

Alabama Church Arsonist Suspects Arrested

Three men were arrested and charged with the church arsons in Alabama (from the Washington Post).

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- For weeks, church congregants in rural Alabama were on high alert, eager to find out who was burning down their churches. The answer, authorities now say, was three college students who took a prank too far.

Agents capped a month of tedious police work Wednesday when they arrested the three friends in connection with nine church arsons that had spread fear through rural Alabama.

According to court filings, the first arsons started as "a joke" that got out of hand. The other fires were apparently an attempt to throw off the massive arson investigation.

...

Two of the suspects were identified as Benjamin Nathan Moseley and Russell Lee DeBusk Jr., both 19-year-old students at Birmingham-Southern College. Matthew Lee Cloyd, a 20-year-old junior at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, also was arrested.

Give me a break. One church arson, let alone nine, doesn't start as a joke. I guess the "joke" is on them. If they are convicted, they will all do some serious time in prison.

Mississippi Hit with 100 Wildland Fires

Wildland fire season has really picked up, especially in the southern states. Mississippi firefighters were busy yesterday (from ClarionLedger.com).

Firefighters battled some 100 wildfires in Mississippi on Wednesday.

The fires were the result of dry and windy conditions that have persisted since Feb. 25, the last day no fires were reported.

The fires stretched as far north as the Tennessee line and south to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

...

Between March 1 and 7, there have been 676 wildfires that burned 23,039 acres statewide, Grizzard said.

By comparison the state averages 564 wildfires in March that burn 10,000 acres, he said.

Firefighter Survives SUV Landing on Him

This is a one-in-a-million survival story from the New York Daily News (via Roanoke Firefighers).

A manhole explosion sent an SUV flying onto a Bronx firefighter - but he was miraculously saved by his helmet when he crashed clean through a side window.

Firefighter Marc Kroenung, a 33-year-old married father of two, was helping extinguish a manhole fire Saturday when an underground explosion sent the Cadillac Escalade hurtling upward.

The giant SUV came down sideways, with the driver's side window shattering against Kroenung's helmet as the auto crashed to the pavement. He was left standing inside the overturned SUV.

This almost seems like something you would see in a cartoon. A couple of inches in any direction and Firefighter Kroenung could have been seriously injured or killed.

Real Stinker of a Fire

From the Wichita Eagle (via FireFightingNews.com):

Wichita firefighters spent much of Wednesday dousing hot spots in what's left of 250 portable toilets that were set on fire early that morning.

Part of a fence protecting the toilets was removed because of construction near AAA Port-O-Jon at 4475 E. 31st St. South, Wichita Fire Capt. Brad Crisp said, and someone set the toilets on fire. The blaze caused an estimated $300,000 in damage.

This is one type of incident I hope I never have to deal with!

Oklahoma Wildland Fire Destroys Homes

Oklahoma got smacked again (from the Washington Post).

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Authorities took one man into custody on suspicion of arson and were searching for another after a wildfire in southwestern Oklahoma destroyed at least 30 homes and forced the evacuation of two schools, a nursing home and area businesses.

The fire was one of several fueled by gusty winds and high temperatures, and firefighters remained at the scene for a second day Thursday. Seven firefighters have been injured while fighting the blazes.

I feel for the homeowners' losses. If the person that was arrested is convicted, they should throw the book at him.

Maryland Volunteer Fired

Looks like things are starting move forward on the Maryland misconduct incident (from nbc4.com).

LARGO, Md. -- A suspended volunteer firefighter has been terminated from the Prince George's County Fire and EMS Department because of an altercation at a fire in Landover Hills on Feb. 13.

...

Part of the confrontation was captured by a neighbor's camcorder. As flames shot from the home, Moses Nicholls said he grabbed his camera, but he captured more than flames. Nicholls recorded an angry Kentland volunteer firefighter screaming profanities at a volunteer from Bladensburg, after the Bladensburg firefighter accidentally drove his ladder truck over a water hose, cutting off the supply.

Then the Kentland volunteer got more aggressive, and the tape shows he eventually shoved the other firefighter.

I can understand the firefighter being upset when the water supply to the house was cut off, but he should have handled it in a professional manner.

I wonder what would have happened if the neighbor had not caught his actions on video.

Maryland Incident Misconduct

Firehouse.com has a bunch of info on the Maryland incident that involved firefighter misconduct and possible criminal conduct (here is the original Firewhirl post).

An incident at a house fire in Maryland February 13 has led to a firefighter's suspension and an investigation that could lead to criminal charges according to Prince George's County Fire/EMS Department spokesman Mark Brady.

The investigation involves sorting out reports of firefighters actions inside a dwelling with fire showing with accusations that air supplies were vandalized by other firefighters, and physical confrontations outside the dwelling between firefighters. It involves several volunteer fire companies and career firefighters stationed at those responding companies.

Read the whole thing and watch the video.

It sounds like next week the investigation may be finished. Then we should hear the whole story. Stay tuned.

Valentine's Liaison Leads to Fire

This cracked me up (from the BBC via FireFightingNews.com).

Firefighters have issued a warning about using candles after a man's underpants caught fire while a young couple "celebrated" Valentine's Day. Crews were called to the house in Henstead Road, Southampton, shortly before midnight on Tuesday after the blaze started in the bedroom.

The discarded pants had caught fire on a nearby candle while the couple were enjoying a Valentine's Day liaison.

Ha! This gives a new meaning for the phrase "hot pants".

Alleged Fight Between Firefighters at Fire

I thought this was a thing of the past (from wusatv9.com via Firehouse.com).

9 News has learned an investigation is underway into why Prince George's County Firefighters were fighting more than fires early Monday morning.

Departmental reports obtained by 9 News include claims by two career firefighters that someone deliberately shut off their air tanks and ripped off some of their protective gear while they fought the house fire on Standish Drive in Landover Hills.

The two firefighters, assigned to the Landover Hills station, received first and second degree burns. The reports claim that firefighters from the all-volunteer Kentland Station got into a battle over who was going to put out the fire.

There is a video report that really has a lot of good information and puts things into perspective.

If the allegations are true, heads should roll.

We'll keep our eye on this and post when we hear more details.

UPDATE: Rhett has some thoughts over at Roanoke Firefighters.

San Diego Engines Catch Fire

The San Diego Fire Department has had not just one, but two engines start on fire in the last few days (from nbcsandiego.com).

Firefighters were in the right place at the right time on Monday morning when a fire truck catches on fire in San Diego.

...

Fire Truck 39 from Tierrasanta was sent out to the call, which was also responded to by the California Highway Patrol. While firefighters were tending to the injured driver, they noticed that their fire engine itself was on fire.

A mechanical fire apparently had started in the engine. At least one fire hose and some other equipment was destroyed. It is not yet known if the truck can be salvaged.

...

Fire Truck 39 was the second fire engine to catch on fire in three days. The other fire, which took place on state Route 163, was also apparently due to mechanical issues.

The story has some pretty good pictures of a fire-damaged pump panel and burned up gear.

Firefighters Shoot Chickens

When I first read this, I thought it was a joke. Then I thought it was something from a long time ago; perhaps the 1800s. But it's from February 1, 2006, in High Springs, Florida (from The High Springs Herald via Roanoke Firefighters).

HIGH SPRINGS — After seeing High Springs firefighters toting rifles through a neighborhood and shooting at chickens last week, residents said they are infuriated.

The southwest sector of town between Southwest Fourth Avenue and Poe Springs Road has had a chicken problem for years.

Many residents said they were upset not that the chickens were killed but the manner in which the situation was handled last Wednesday, Feb. 1.

Residents said they were not notified that the shooting would happen, that they worried about the safety of their children and pets, and that firefighters ran through private property without permission.

Read the whole article. It sounds like the city tried a number of ways to remove the wild chickens before they decided to shoot them. The firefighters were supervised by law enforcement officers along with other safety precautions.

I have to admit that the mental picture of this operation made me laugh!

Fire Station Burns Down

Here is another incident involving a fire station near Boulder, CO (from longmontfyi.com).

BOULDER — Steve Lavington didn’t expect to have as wild a Friday night as the one he experienced this weekend.

The longtime Sunshine Canyon resident watched as the fire station that sat just 200 feet from his home on Boulder County Road 83 burned nearly to the ground.

“I saw flames ... and immediately called 911,” Steve Lavington told the Daily Times-Call on Saturday.

The cause of the fire, which destroyed the Sunshine Fire Protection District station, was still under investigation Saturday.

...

Because firefighters quickly responded to the scene, they were able to rescue two trucks parked in the station’s garage, he said.

I'm sure the Sunshine Fire Protection District would appreciate any assistance you can give them.

If I find out any more details, I'll post them.

UPDATE: Here is an article from cbs4denver.com (with video) via FireFightingNews.com.

Investigators Find Handprint

CNN has an update on the investigation of the church fires in Alabama:

ALICEVILLE, Alabama (CNN) -- Investigators looking into the fires at nine Baptist churches in Alabama over the past week are hoping a handprint left on one church's front door may help catch a perpetrator.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives would not indicate whether its agents were able to lift a readable fingerprint from the inside part of the front door at Dancy First Baptist Church, south of Aliceville in Pickens County.

It looks like the ATF is getting serious about this investigation:

More than 100 ATF personnel, including special agents and forensic experts, are investigating the fires. A criminal and geographical profiler also has been called in.

Hopefully, they catch the arsonist soon.

Alabama Churches Set Ablaze

A rash of church fires broke out in Alabama (from FOXNews.com).

CENTREVILLE, Ala. — The search for a possible arsonist was underway Friday after six churches in rural Alabama were found burning.

FOX affiliate WBRC in Birmingham, Ala., confirmed that the churches in Bibb County burned Friday morning. As of 7 a.m. EST., those churches were Rehobeth Baptist Church in Randolph, Ashby Baptist Church in Briarfield, Old Union Baptist Church in Briarfield, Pleasant Sabine Antioch southeast of Centerville and Antioch Church in Antioch. Older Church in Chilton County also burned. Ashby Baptist and Rehobeth Baptist both burned to the ground.

All churches are within a 15- to 20-mile radius of each other, according to WBRC, and all were close to highways.

Hopefully, nobody was injured in these fires.

What really ticks me off about arson is that it exposes firefighters to a dangerous situation. It doesn't matter if the fire was accidental or arson, firefighters could get hurt or killed. Grr.

Russian Office Building Fire Video

Here is a video of an office building fire (9 stories), from Firehouse.com via Roanoke Firefighters.

WARNING: The video contains graphic scenes.

This video has good footage of an aerial ladder being put to use, master streams, EMS crews, and other apparatus.

Here is an excerpt from the Firehouse.com article:

Prosecutors have charged two more people in connection with an office-building blaze last week that killed nine people in the Russian Pacific port of Vladivostok.

Metal gates blocking stairwells in the nine-story building trapped workers on the upper floors during last Monday's blaze. Several of the victims jumped or fell to their deaths trying to escape the smoke and flames.

Prosecutor Alexander Anikin said in comments broadcast on NTV that an employee of the state-owned Sberbank had been charged with failing to oversee fire safety at the part of the building that the bank occupied.

SUV Versus House

Check out the pictures of an SUV that took on a house over at 43 Firefighter. My favorite is the third picture from the top.

Another Mine Fire

The rash of mine fires continued this weekend with a mine fire in Canada (from the Washington Post).

ESTERHAZY, Saskatchewan -- Rescuers retrieved 67 western Canadian potash miners who had been trapped underground by a fire, but several more miners were still in subterranean emergency chambers Monday waiting for help.

Seventy-two miners were trapped early Sunday when a fire started in polyethylene piping more than a half-mile underground.

When toxic smoke began to fill the tunnels, the miners retreated to so-called refuge stations _ spacious chambers that can be sealed off and are equipped with supplies of oxygen, food and water.

At least this one has a happy ending. The remaining miners will be brought to the surface later today.

Fighting a fire underground would be tricky to say the least. I don't know a thing about it but I'm guessing that there is all kinds of specialized equipment that is necessary. Air supply must be a huge factor.

Here is the NIOSH page on mine fires for a little background reading.

Australian Bushfires Force Evacuations

Australian bushfires are heating up (from Radio New Zealand):

Four major bushfires in the Australian state of Victoria have forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents.

Eleven communities which are directly in the path of a massive bushfire in the west of the state have now been placed on high alert.

The blaze in the Grampians National Park has burnt through 120,000 hectares of bush and farmland, and destroyed 24 homes.

It is expected to intensify as soaring temperatures combine with high winds. Many residents have already evacuated and those remaining have been warned to maintain a constant vigil.

I don't have time to do the exact conversion on the acreage, but it is somewhere over 250,000 acres!

Fire Pictures During Snowfall

Tim at 43 Firefighter has some pictures of an incident - a fire at a Burger King during a pretty heavy snowfall. Check 'em out.

UPDATE: Tim's pictures are also featured at FireFightingNews.com as a photostory!

Amazing Numbers on Australian Fire

Here are some amazing numbers from a wildland fire in Australia (from theage.com.au).

DSE spokeswoman Rachaele May said an estimated 50,000 sheep died, 30,000 bales of hay and 300km of fencing were destroyed in the Grampians blaze in which almost 100,000 hectares had been razed.

300 km = 186 miles.
100,000 hectares = 247,105 acres.

Here is another number that surprised me:

Firefighters plan to backburn 8000 hectares in the Halls Gap area before Thursday.

That is almost 20,000 acres or about 31 square miles - just for burning out! I guess when the Aussies burn out they get serious about it.

Firefighter Caught in Flames on Ladder

You'll definitely want to check out this video and slide show from cbs2chicago.com (via Firehouse.com). It shows a Chicago firefighter descending a ladder when the flames engulf the ladder. From the report on the video, the firefighter received minor burns and was not transported to the hospital.

Real Life Dudley Do-Right

An off-duty firefighter and other witnesses rescued a woman from an approaching train (from NBC4.TV via FireFightingNews.com).

LOS ANGELES -- A young woman whose car ended up on railroad tracks after a collision with another car was rescued by an off-duty firefighter and other witnesses moments before a freight train slammed into the sedan, police said.

Amanda Pratt, 20, of Whittier, was westbound on Kimberly Avenue at about 8:30 a.m. when her 1999 Ford Escort collided with a 1991 Toyota Corolla northbound on Acacia Avenue, said Fullerton police Sgt. Linda King.

The preliminary investigation indicated that Pratt might have failed to stop at a stop sign, King said.

The woman's Escort was struck on the driver door side and careened onto the tracks as a 70-car BNSF train traveling from Los Angeles to Barstow approached, King said.

The train was about 1,000 feet away as the scenario unfolded, she said. The conductor was able to slow the train but could not stop before it hit the Escort on the right fender, King said.

Off-duty Fullerton firefighter Pete Gray said the train was bearing down on the car when the woman was rescued. Pratt's door was jammed from the car crash, the firefighter said.

Good job, Firefighter Gray!

Fire at the Pentagon

There was a kitchen fire at the Pentagon this morning (from FOXNews.com).

WASHINGTON — A fire broke out in a third-floor kitchen stove at the Pentagon Thursday morning and spread to ductwork that passed through the fourth and fifth floors to the roof, authorities said.

The blaze was quelled, said Arlington County Fire Department spokesman Tom Polera, but the process of cleaning up and checking the damaged area for hot spots was continuing, complicated by asbestos surrounding the ductwork.

This is such a big building, I'm sure that are lots of incidents that we never hear about. This one must have been a big enough deal to make the news.

It would be interesting to be on the fire department that covers high profile buildings like the Pentagon, the Capitol building, or the White House.

Fire Station Destroyed in Fire

It really sucks when you read these stories (from WBOC.com via FireFightingNews.com).

BLOXOM , Va.- It was a sick twist of fate for Bloxom volunteer firefighters. While they were out battling one fire, another fire destroyed their empty firehouse. It happened shortly after midnight.

Firefighters with the Bloxom Volunteer Fire Company left their Station 6 headquarters just a little after midnight on Wednesday to respond to a call 10 minutes down the road. But an hour later they had to rush back to extinguish a roaring blaze that destroyed the building and everything inside.

They lost everything except what they had at the first incident. This includes two ambulances; one of them purchased just a couple of weeks before the fire.

We wish the Bloxom Volunteer Fire Company a speedy recovery as their replace their equipment and rebuilt a station.

Train Collision in Alabama

FOXNews.com reports that there was a train collision in Alabama:

LINCOLN, Ala. — About 500 residents evacuated their homes after a train carrying sodium cyanide rear-ended a second train and caught fire, authorities said. No injuries were reported.

The collision Wednesday evening in north Alabama sent flames and a plume of black smoke into the air that could be seen 40 miles away in Birmingham, officials said. The blaze continued late into the night.

Luckily, no injuries or deaths have been reported.

Here is the sodium cyanide page in the Emergency Response Guide.

Oklahoma Homes Lost to More Grassfires

New grassfires in Oklahoma have destroyed at least 20 homes according to FOXNews.com.

OKLAHOMA CITY — Wind-driven grass fires that destroyed at least two dozen homes and forced hundreds of evacuations continued to burn Friday in southern Oklahoma, which remained extremely dry despite snowfall earlier in the week.

The worst fires raged in Carter County near Ratliff City, after burning through at least 20 homes overnight, and west of Marlow in Stephens County, said Michelle Finch, fire information officer for the Oklahoma Forestry Department.

Even with lots of resources, including heavy air tankers, these fires are very difficult to stop.

Mouse House Fire Just a Rumor

Well, it looks like a story that circulated around the internet, including here at Firewhirl, was just a rumor (from TheNewMexicoChannel.com).

FORT SUMNER, N.M. -- A small -town rumor that sparked world -wide interest about a mouse burning down a house has been found to be untrue.

After 81-year-old Chano Mares's house burned down Saturday in Fort Sumner, news services picked up the quirky story.

...

The mouse story, however, has been doused by Mares.

"It's really humorous more than anything that a mouse burned down the house," he told KOAT-TV in Albuquerque. The mouse was dead when it hit the burning leaves.

Mares said he trapped and killed the critter and tossed it on the fire.

The flames, he said, probably reached his house because they were driven by high winds.

...

Mares lost everything -- and has no insurance -- but the mouse story still makes him smile.

"I started laughing, and I'll be laughing from now on," he said. "It's silly."

In the past, I've been hard on media outlets that pass on rumors. Well, now I have to eat a little crow, because I'm guilty of that very thing.

Please accept my apology for passing on incorrect information. However, like Mr. Mares, the rumor makes me laugh when I think about it.

Firefighters Remove Dead Fish?

When I first read this (from ABC News Online), I thought that the firefighters on this crew were nuts.

Firefighters have removed a tonne-and-a-half of rotting fish from a stranded fishing trawler at Lakes Entrance overnight.

The fish have been stuck in the hull of the trawler Tarpeena since Thursday night, when the ship ran aground in a build-up of sand on the Lakes Entrance bar.

Why would firefighters be involved with getting rid of dead fish? Then I read the next sentence and it started to make some sense.

The fish had produced the chemical H2S, which is toxic to humans and gives off a rotten egg-like smell.

Fifteen firefighters took nearly 12 hours to remove the fish, using big fans to ventilate the confined space.

Hydrogen Sulfide. Nasty stuff. The firefighters were called in to deal with a hazardous materials incident caused by the rotting fish. Check the online Emergency Response Guide for details on H20 (pdf).

Video of New Zealand Firefighters

Check out this news video regarding a wildland fire in New Zealand (from tvnz). Not much different than how we do things here in the U.S. I did notice a few things though: helicopters used "monsoon" buckets, the helicopters few into the night hours, and I didn't see fire shelters on the two firefighters mopping up.

It's interesting to see how firefighting agencies in other parts of the world fight fires.

Mouse Fire Starts House Fire

UPDATE: This story has turned out to be a rumor. See this post for details.

A mouse fire started a house fire (I feel like Dr. Seuss). This from the Clovis News Journal via FireFightingNews.com.

Homeowner Luciano Mares said he caught a mouse inside his residence and discarded the creature in a pile of garden refuse he was burning on his property near the home.

“I had some leaves burning outside, so I threw it in the fire, and the mouse was on fire and ran back at the house,” he said.

All contents of the wooden home were destroyed, according to village Fire Chief Juan Chavez. Aside from the mouse, no injuries were reported.

Oops!

Tajikistan Orphanage Fire Kills at Least 13

Posting on incidents where there are fatalities can get to be a grim activity, so I try to limit these types of posts of "out of the ordinary" types of things.

There was an orphanage fire in Tajikistan on January 8th (from ScienceDaily.com).

DUSHANBE, Tajikistan, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- A fire swept through a one-story wooden orphanage in the capital of Tajikistan early Sunday and killed 13 disabled children.

Russia's Interfax news agency reported 79 children between the ages of six and 16 were evacuated, 60 of them "with burns and carbon monoxide poisoning."

...

While a criminal investigation was immediately declared, various local media said it was quite apparent that an electrical overload caused by space heaters was the cause of the fire.

While many of the children were evacuated, it is tragic that so many lost their lives. Here is another article (from People's Daily Online) that has some pictures of the building.

So where is Tajikistan? It is a country in central Asia bordering China, Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan. Here is a map.

I don't know much about this country, but I wonder if they have laws regarding fire safety?

UPDATE: Here are more details from the BBC.

Wildland Fires Hit Colorado, Arkansas

The spate of