Remembering the State Fair Fire Brigade

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The Raleigh Fire Museum has added more vintage photos of the State Fair Fire Brigade to their Flickr site. See their photo album of State Fair fire history. 

From the 1960s to 2005, the brigade provided on-site fire protection (and fellowship) during the State Fair. Members were primarily off-duty Raleigh firefighters. They lived on site, and utilized apparatus loaned by vendors.

Thanks to longtime brigade member, retired Captain Paul Averette, for the pictures. Read about their history, in these notes of mine.

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Renovations to Station 11

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Here are floor plans and site plan for the renovations of Raleigh Fire Station 11 at 2925 Glenridge Road. The long-planned project will update the 1971 building and its systems. This is another “down to the walls” project, like Station 2 and Station 5. The project will also expand the apparatus area, to accommodate a larger ladder truck. 

The project was planned as early as 2011 and was funded in the FY2014 budget. Here’s a newsletter story from 2014 (PDF). See page six. Some things have changed since that time, including a revised project scope (and resulting design) and the future ladder truck to be assigned to Station 11.


Legeros photo from 2012

Notable additions include an enclosed laundry room and fitness room, accessed from the enlarged apparatus area. That space will also include an mechanical mezzanine, above the laundry and fitness rooms. (It’s not shown in plans excerpt below.)

Also the sleeping areas will be reconfigured, expanding that space and adding an officer for the company officers. 

Work will be starting soon. Ladder 2 will move to Station 15 at the end of the month. They’re receiving old Ladder 4, a 2017 Pierce Arrow XT tiller, 1500/300/100-foot. Later, Engine 11 will relocate to Station 7.

Click to enlarge these plans, which were colorized by Legeros, for easier viewing:

Current Floor Plan

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Future Floor Plan

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Site Plan

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Relocating Fire Station 12 – Address Change

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October 10, 2018
Be advised. The street address for the new fire station has changed. Old address was 807 Bus Way. New address is 4306 Poole Road. Memo to self: Update all things in all places. 

August 27, 2018
Now Open!

The city’s newest fire station was activated on Monday, August 13. Beginning that morning, Engine 12 and Battalion 2 personnel began moving personal belongings from their old station.

Ladder 8 also moved, from Station 26 on Barwell Road. And the platoon Division Chief, Car 20, moved from the basement of Station 8 on Western Boulevard.

The station was placed in service that afternoon. Watch this space for the official opening, to be announced soon. 

See more pictures from moving day and week, by Mike Legeros and Lee Wilson.

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August 14, 2018 Continue reading ‘Relocating Fire Station 12 – Address Change’ »

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Rolesville Planning Future Fire Stations

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Rolesville Rural Fire Department celebrated their 60th anniversary today, with a reception and open house. (Pictures coming!)

Displayed was this Davis/Kane drawing and site design of a fire station concept. Click to enlarge:

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Recall from this 2016 blog post that the department has been planning for three future fire stations. This design can be used for all three, they note.

The department has already purchased three sites, for the planned stations:

  • 4124 Burlington Mills Road
    • 3.48 acres
    • Purchased 4/29/16
  • Fowler Road at Mitchell Mill Road, southwest corner
    • 5.91 acres
    • Purchased 6/25/2018
  • Old Pearce Road, just east of Daniel Road
    • 9.00 acres
    • Purchased 10/15/2016

Timeframe for the project(s) to start is two to five years.  

As noted in that 2016 blog post, Rolesville is the largest single-station fire department in the county, protecting 32.88 square miles with one fire station.

The additional stations are needed to meet the rapid growth in both the municipal and rural areas of their fire district. (In 2016, Realtor.com called Rolesville the seventh fastest growing town in the country.) 

Standard disclaimers apply. As with all things planned, things may change. 

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Twin Tillers Coming to Cary

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The Cary Fire Department has placed an order for two, count ’em two, identical Pierce Enforcer Ascendant tractor-drawn aerial ladders, or tillers. 

From this Atlantic Emergency Solutions Facebook post, the spec includes: 

  • 60″ cab 
  • TAK-4 Independent Front Suspension
  • Detroit DD13 525hp engine
  • USSC Valor Seating
  • HiViz LED scene lighting
  • Harrison 6kW generator

And needed the ability to back-fill stations, Cary has added:

  • 1500 GPM Waterous pump
  • 200 gallon tank
  • 40″ pump house, all while maintaining a short, 169″ wheelbase.

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North Carolina Fallen Firefighters to be Honored at National Memorial

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This post originated as a Facebook posting on Legeros Fire Line.

The 37th National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service will be held on Sunday, October 7, 2018, at the National Fire Academy in Emmitsburg, MD.  The ceremony will honor the lives of 80 firefighters who died in the line of duty in 2017 and 23 firefighters who died in previous years. They include four firefighters from North Carolina, listed below.

The names of the firefighters will be read, and their loved ones will receive an American flag that had been flown above the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial and the U.S. Capitol Dome. They will also be presented with a red rose and a special personalized badge. During the ceremony, a bronze plaque bearing the names of the fallen will be officially added to the national memorial. 

The service begins at 10:00 a.m. and is open to the public. The fallen firefighters will be remembered at a Candlelight Service at the same location on Saturday, October 6, 6:30 p.m.

Visit https://www.firehero.org/ for more information, including the 2018 Roll of Honor. 

Rufus E. Brinson Jr.
Reelsboro FD
Died 6/6/08
Collapsed during training

Jason Keith Hensley
Triple Community FD
Died 10/9/17
Vehicle collision while responding to call

Donald “Reid” Key II
Whispering Pines FD
Died 12/27/16
Became ill after returning home from fire station

Eric Durean Lacewell
Wilmington FD
Died 11/4/14
Injuries from accident at station on 3/31/11

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Hurricane Florence Photo Galleries

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Here are my galleries on SmugMug, of pictures before, during, and after Hurricane Florence, as things happened around Raleigh.

Ergo, lots of pics of preparations, and after-storm actions. Exactly one incident, wires on fire, during the worst of the local weather. 

And may add a few more bits and pieces, in the coming weeks, as other interesting things are spotted around town. 

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Raleigh’s New Pierce Fire Apparatus

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Four new pieces of Pierce fire apparatus have arrived or are arriving in Raleigh.

  • 2018 Pierce Arrow XT aerial ladder, 107-foot. First pump-less ladder since 1986.
    Production complete, delivery soon.
  • 2018 Pierce Arrow XT heavy rescue, walk-in body, two-person cab. First walk-in heavy rescue since 1953.
    Delivered August 24. Still getting tags, and equipment mounted. 
  • 2018 Pierce Enforcer pumper #1 of 2, 1500/500/20.
    Delivered July 12. Placed in service August 2. 
  • 2018 Pierce Enforce pumper #2 of 2, 1500/500/20.
    Delivered July 12. Placed in service August 2. 

Factory photos are below, from the Pierce Flickr page. See that site for larger versions. Click to enlarge:

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Responding to Fran – September 1996

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As Hurricane Florence approaches, many in Raleigh are remembering Fran from 22 years ago. The storm struck the city with hurricane-force winds on Thursday night, September 5, 1996. 

During a three-day period, the Raleigh Fire Department answered nearly 700 calls, with call types ranging from fires (46) and medical emergencies (142), to flooding (33) and trees on buildings or people (33), to electrical (163) and fuel hazard (97), to false alarms and false calls (121).

Effects of the storm were felt in Raleigh starting around 11:00 p.m., with a tornado watch for the entire state issued after 1:00 p.m. The airport recorded 8.8 inches of rain over 24 hours, which broke the 1929 record of 6.66 inches. It measured wind gusts as high as 79 mph.

By daybreak, the storm had passed over the city. Almost all of Wake County was without power, and none of the city’s 420 traffic lights was working. Damage was reported across all of the county’s 891 square miles. It produced 3.5 million cubic yards of debris. Four people were killed in Wake County, among the 24 killed in North Carolina. The storm did $2.3 billion damage in the state

Here’s a retrospective that’s been on the back burner for a while, with a list of calls and log book entries. Plus related links. It’s a firm reminder to be prepared.

Read the retrospective.

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