Fatal Fire: Buffalo N.Y., 2280 Genesee St. - 03.07.2014

BUFFALO, N.Y.  (The Buffalo News) — The owner of an East Side auto repair shop was killed this afternoon when an explosion ripped through his garage bay.

Firefighters and police were on the scene of the fire at Steve’s Auto Service, 2280 Genesee St., at East End Avenue.

A worker said the owner and he were working on a fuel pump of a car when the phone rang. The worker left the garage to answer the phone. He then heard the owner yell: “Fire!”

The garage then burst into flames. The worker apparently could not get back into the shop because of the ferocity of the fire.

Firefighters quickly arrived at the scene and managed to drag the owner, Stephen J. Pawlowski, 56, of the Town of Tonawanda out of the burning garage.

Witnesses said they put him in a snow bank to douse the flames. He was rushed to a hospital by ambulance.

A worker from the garage also was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Buffalo Fire Commissioner Garnell Whitfield says firefighters responded to Steve’s Auto Service at 2280 Genesee St. near East End just after 1 p.m. Friday. Upon arrival, Whitfield says they found heavy fire conditions and two victims outside the building.

"One of them in particular had severe burns to him. He was assisted by other pedestrians and civilians. He has since been pronounced deceased at ECMC hospital," Whitfield says.

Fire Commissioner Whitfield says the cause of the incident is under investigation. He says there are reports of several explosions at the scene, reports the fire master is working to verify.

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

North Minneapolis Duplex Fire, 5 Children Dead - 02.14.2014

MINNEAPOLIS, MN (KSTP TV5) Five children were killed in a three-alarm fire at a duplex in North Minneapolis on Friday morning, according to a source.

The home is on the 2800 block of North Colfax Avenue near North 29th Avenue. The building is a multiple-family home with at least two units.

It is believed the fire started in the center of the second floor and then extended to the first floor before climbing to the third, Minneapolis Fire Chief John Fruetel said.

The fire chief said they received a call about smoke in the area around 5 a.m. Friday. When crews arrived, they found heavy smoke on the second and third floors, which quickly changed to heavy fire.

"Crews did a remarkable job of extracting what victims they could," said Fruetel. "They made entrance into the structure under very, very precarious conditions."

Read more of the story here http://ow.ly/tE6kn

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO/AP) – Five children died after a Friday morning fire in a north Minneapolis duplex, according to the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Crews were called to the 2800 block of Colfax Avenue North around 5 a.m. When authorities arrived, they encountered heavy smoke coming from the second and third floors of the home. The smoke quickly changed to fire.

More than 40 firefighters were called to the scene where cold conditions made battling the blaze difficult.

“They made entry into the structure under very, very, very precarious conditions,” said Minneapolis Fire Chief John Fruetel.
Crews were able to get several people out of the home, but the Hennepin County Medical Examiner said five children died. According to the Minneapolis Fire Department, three of the children died on the scene. Fruetel said other victims, including one adult who is a parent, were taken to either North Memorial Medical Center or Hennepin County Medical Center for treatment.

One firefighter was also injured, but was quickly treated at Hennepin County Medical Center and released.

Fruetel said that 15 people total live in the duplex.

Read more of the story here http://ow.ly/tE71S 

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.) 

Elmira New York House Fire - Four Killed In Blaze

ELMIRA, N.Y. (AP) — A fire tore through a home, spewing flames from the windows and killing four children, neighbors said.
The four victims had been pulled from the burning upstate New York home by firefighters and medics but died later.

The blaze swept through the two-story home, on a tidy block in the riverside city of Elmira, south of New York's Finger Lakes near the Pennsylvania border, on Friday night. Fire officials said the building was engulfed in flames when they arrived.

Police didn't immediately release the names and ages of the victims but confirmed on Saturday that children were among them.

Neighbor Glen Bolt told the Elmira Star-Gazette (http://stargaz.tt/1e0Etyc ) that he ran across the street when he saw flames pouring out of the home's windows and front door. He said the children in the home ranged in age from around 5 to 15.

"Me and the neighbor there busted the windows out, hoping the kids would come through that window," said Bolt, 72. "But by that time the smoke had already got them."

Firefighters had the blaze under control fairly quickly, officials said. The victims were found on the second floor in the home, said Mark Cicora, the deputy director of operations for the Chemung County Office of Fire and Emergency Management.

The cause and circumstances of the fire were under investigation.

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

Montgomery County PA. Fire Injuries Firefighters

Fire crews were dispatched just before 12:30 p.m. to areported structral fire at 58 Reiffs Mill Road in Ambler Boro, Montgomery County  Pennsylvania on Monday May, 13 2013. 

The fire extended into numerous void spaces on the second floor. Several firefighters were caught in a flash over on the second floor.  Two Firefighters were transported to the hospital. One firefighter suffered a laceration while another  firefighter was rushed to Abington Hospital for treatment. There was no immediate word on that firefighter's condition. The firefighter with  laceration injury was out of the hospital by 5:00 p.m. 

The Red Cross is also on the scene and says a family of seven has been affected by the fire.

Fire officials say the fire was placed under control at about 3:45 p.m.

There is no word on a cause.

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

Pottsville Pennsylvania - 6 Die In Late-Night Fire

6 Die After Late-Night Fire In Pottsville - Philadelphia News, Weather and Sports from WTXF FOX 29

The Pottsville house, in eastern Pennsylvania,  where four children and two adults died in a raging fire lacked smoke detectors and had a wood stove lit late Sunday to ward off the unseasonable chill.


The Schuylkill County Communications Center said the fire was reported at 11:55 p.m Sunday. The structral blaze broke Sunday, May 12, 2013, at the single-family home in Pottsville, about 90 miles northwest of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania's coal country. 


Firefighters later found the bodies inside, according to Schuylkill County emergency dispatch supervisor Bill Lindenmuth.






Pottsville Fire Chief Todd March said he's only had two fire in his 37-year career with multiple deaths, and in both of those cases it was two.

"We've had nothing like this before," March said. "A lot of the younger guys haven't had a fire death. A lot of the guys are affected by this, especially the kids."


The fire crews got water in the fire immediately, March said, but within five minutes the entire front of the building was engulfed in flames.


"The neighbors smelled smoke, including the mother, and they came out to see what was going on, and they just saw it, you know, heavily involved in the back of the building, a lot of smoke coming out the front," March said.


"It looks like it started back in the kitchen area. We're going to look at that, see if it has something to do with it," March said. "The floors are burnt out in a lot of places, so we've got to watch what we're doing in there."



 



The fire was declared under control shortly before 1am. 

Several firefighters were also reportedly injured while battling the flames.  

A Pennsylvania State Police fire marshal was at the scene Monday morning. 

The cause of the blaze wasn't immediately known.









(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

Firefighters Battle Fire At South Side Easton Home

Firefighters were dispatched when a fire started in a South Side Easton, Pennsylvania two-story home Friday evening, at 7:50 p.m., at 1074 W. Wilkes-Barre St. The structural fire forced an evacuation and badly damaged the second floor.





Easton station 20 was dispatched at 19:53 hours for a reported house fire with possible entrapment at 1074 W. Wilkes-Barre Street. Arrival of the first due engine reported fire in the eaves of a 2.5-story duplex. A woman was reported to be in the home when the fire started, but was out by the the time firefighters arrived. The fire attack went defensive shortly after arrival.





"Everything just exploded out," said Smith, who lives next to 1072 and 1074 W. Wilkes Barre St. in Easton.

Firefighters from at least three communities -- Easton, Wilson Borough and Bethlehem -- responded while Palmer Township covered Easton's Central Fire Station and Forks Township covered the College Hill station.

Easton Deputy Fire Chief John Price reported, Firefighters were sent into the building at first but were ordered out because it wasn't safe. It wasn't until almost 10 p.m. that flames were no longer visible from outside the home.

No one was injured but the fire burned so hot that the home's windows exploded.

Easton Mayor Sal Panto Jr., who lives on South Side was at the scene of the fire and said, “That’s the most important thing. Buildings can be replaced, people can’t.”




(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

4 West Webster N.Y. Volunteer Firefighters Shot Responding To House Fire - 2 Firefighters Killed

A unknown gunman ambushed four volunteer firefighters who responded to a house fire early Monday morning in West Webster, N.Y., killing two and seriously injuring two others, along with an off-duty police officer. Someone shot at firefighters around 6 a.m. Monday when they arrived at the scene of the blaze. 

According to fire officials, the threat presented by the gunman in Webster was eliminated. They believe he died as a result of a gunshot, but did not specify whether or not the wound was self-inflicted.

Police have not released the gunman's identity.


They say the incident appears to have been a trap, although they cautioned that they are in the early stages of the investigation.

Officials confirmed that police exchanged gunfire with a person when they responded to the scene.

One of the volunteer firefighters  Mike Chiapperini, who was killed was also a member of the Webster Police Department.




The other firefighter was Tomasz Kaczowka, a 911 dispatcher.

The alleged assailant, who also died, apparently took aim at the firefighters as they arrived at an early morning house and vehicle fire in the Rochester-area town of Webster, Police Chief Gerald Pickering said.

Pickering said two of the firefighters who were shot died at the scene. The two injured firefighters were hospitalized in intensive care, officials said. An off-duty police officer passing by the area also sustained shrapnel wounds, Pickering said.

Authorities did not immediately identify the suspect, who Pickering said was found dead at the scene.


"It does appear that it was a trap that was set," said Pickering, who choked back tears as he talked about the firefighters who were killed. One was also a police lieutenant with about 20 years on the force.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo described the Webster shooting as horrific and senseless.


"Volunteer firefighters and police officers were injured and two were taken from us as they once again answered the call of duty," he said in a statement.

Gunman dead after killing 2 firefighters, 3 others wounded at scene of blaze near Rochester

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

Moore Township, Pennsylvania Structural Fire 11.04.2012

Multiple company's and firefighters battle a "fully engulfed" blaze. 

Emergency crews responded to a large fire at a home at 193 Nazareth Drive, in Moore Township, Northampton County, Pennsylvania Sunday afternoon.

On arrival, command found heavy fire on the top floor and roof of a 2-story dwelling.

The "fully engulfed" blaze broke out around 1:30pm at the home at 193 Nazareth Drive which is also known as Route 946.

All occupants evacuated safely from a house, and no firefighters were injured.

The cause of the blaze remains unknown.

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

Buffalo Fire Dept - 701 E Utica Street 06.23.2012

Fire Damages East Side Apartment Building

BUFFALO, NY - (WGRZ) Fire investigators are still looking into what caused a large fire on the city's east side. Crews were called to a 4-unit apartment building around 1:45am Saturday. The fire started on the first floor of the two-story building but quickly spread to the second floor, according to the Buffalo Fire Department. A total of $40,000 damage was caused to the building and $10,000 to it's contents.
Red Cross has been notified to help 3 adults and 3 children that lived in the apartments.
Buffalo Police say they're investigating the cause of this fire and that it remains suspicious.



BFD arrived early this morning for a report of a structure fire on E Utica St between Filmore & Humbolt at 01:44 hrs..

Engine 33 went on location reporting a working fire and laying in a lines. B-56 reported fire on the 1st floor of a 2 story 4 unit apartment building with extension to the 2nd floor and attic via #4 side 1st floor widow.
 
The fire was under control in under 30 minutes.

Firefighters douse overnight blaze: wivb.com

Crews quickly put out east side fire

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Buffalo's bravest were called to fight a fire on the city's east side a little before 2 a.m. Saturday.  Everyone was safely evacuated from the four-apartment building on East Utica Street and firefighters got the flames under control.

Firefighters say the building's flat roof and lack of an attic helped limit the spread of the flames, allowing them to contain the fire quickly.

Most of the damage, estimated at $60,000, was contained to one apartment. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

Woodbury Heights Fire Co. Station House On Fire 3.23.2012

At around 5:45 a.m., fire consumed at least a portion of the second floor on the east end of the building and left a gaping hole in the roof of the Woodbury Heights Fire Co. station house in Gloucester County, New Jersey.

One firefighter was taken to hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation. The blaze was reported declared under control at 6:46 a.m.. No fire trucks were damaged.

Woodbury Heights Firehouse Catches Fire: MyFoxPHILLY.com

Woodbury Heights Fire Department,a fire company founded in 1911, is an all-volunteer department that maintains two pumpers, one rescue pumper and one ambulance, according to its website.

“It looks to me like the whole second floor is gone,” Fire Chief Rob Conley said of the damage. He also said officials didn’t have in mind a possible cause for the fire as of around 7:30 a.m., but that the Gloucester County Fire Marshal’s Office would begin investigating as soon as they could.

An investigation will be launched to determine the cause of the blaze.

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; This is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)

Former Derby Factory Outlet Building Fire: Binghamton NY

A two-alarm fire began to blaze this morning in the city of Binghamton, New York, at around 07:40 am, to where heavy smoke could be seen pouring out of a four-story brick building which was the former Derby Fashion Outlet building at 301 Water Street around Clinton Street. The high volume of smoke was reported being seen from several neighboring community around the City of Binghamton

The fire response was upgraded to a second alarm while firefighters heading to the scene, Binghamton Fire Chief Daniel Thomas said.

Crews remained outside the building to fight the fire due to the heat. These types of fires can be especially difficult to knock down and combat for extinguishment. The warehouse was believed to be abandoned also.

When they arrived, firefighters saw fire coming from multiple floors in the four-story brick building and heavy smoke, Thomas said. Because of the intense heat and fears of a possible collapse, firefighters set up about 75 feet from the building and poured water into the building using aerial trucks.

Part of the building collapsed as Binghamton firefighters were entering their fifth hour of putting out a fire at 301 Water Street in the former Derby Factory Outlet building. There are no reports of injuries.

After firefighting operations were into the fifth hour, portions of the third & fourth floors, and the roof had collapsed; another major collapse happened about 45 minutes later. The building is a total loss, Thomas said.

About 40 firefighters were on the scene at the height of the fire that was under control, but not extinguished by mid-morning. No one was hurt in the fire.

Due to a fire at the Derby Building located at 301 Water Street in downtown Binghamton, the Broome County Health Department had issued a respiratory alert for those in the vicinity of the fire. This included, center city extending northeast between Front Street and Brandywine Ave Route 7. Humid conditions had prolonged smoke dissipation in the area. Those located within this area were advised to take precautions and to avoid unnecessary smoke inhalation by staying indoors and avoid travel in the area of the warehouse fire till containment/extinguishment was completed by the Binghamton Fire department.

(The usual disclaimers: I am not a journalist; this is a blog that expresses an outlook and is not conclusive in any shape or manner.)