End of an era. This week, the City of Raleigh Fire Department’s beloved Snorkel was retired. Effective April 1, 2020. The 1988 Pierce Arrow, with an 85-foot boom and no pump, had served as a reserve apparatus for over a decade. It was currently designated Ladder 210. Most recently and famous, it operated at one …
Long before COVID crashed our shores, our fire departments and rescue squads assisted with another national health crisis. During the polio outbreaks of the 1940s and 1950s, they added iron lungs to their emergency equipment. Here’s the Durham Fire Department receiving one, as photographed by Charles Cooper for the Durham Morning Herald and/or Sun on …
Forgot to blog about this last year. Another Legeros history chart, this time about the New Bern Fire Department. Created in July 2019, following the release of Daniel Bartholf’s book, History of Firefighting in New Bern, North Carolina – Colonial Days to the 21st Century. See earlier posting. One disclaimer, it’s a draft version. Will …
Continue reading ‘Visual History of the (Early) New Bern Fire Department’ »
This content was originally posted on the Legeros Fire Line Facebook page. Go there for more content and much more frequent postings. March 26, 2020 Photo error!. The previously included photos of a burning grandstand were not from this incident, but an earlier speedway fire in Greensboro. The grandstand at their fairgrounds burned on May 1, …
Continue reading ‘The Grandstand Burned… But The Race Continued, 1959’ »
March 17 The special-called meeting on April 9 has also been cancelled. March 12, 2020 Due to the very fluid and evolving COVID 19 situation, Wake County Fire Services has cancelled the scheduled March 19, 2020, meeting of the Wake County Fire Commission and all scheduled subcommittee meetings for the remainder of March. They will …
Continue reading ‘CANCELLED – Wake County Fire Commission Meeting – March 19, 2020’ »
See photos of project. March 12, 2020 Ready to Open Long-overdue update. Cary Station 9 is but days away from going into service. Paid a visit on Tuesday and snapped some pictures inside. Have also been taking pictures over the last eighteen months of construction, both ground and drone pictures. See those photos. Station 9 …
Continue reading ‘Relocating Cary Station 9 – Ready to Open’ »
The City of Raleigh recently received a pair of staffing studies about the fire and police departments. City Council received a summary of the reports at a work session on Monday, February 24, 2020. You can watch that work session at www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJJa30Nb9Qo. Start at 01:05:00. Below are links to the studies, the presentation slides, and …
Continue reading ‘Raleigh Fire and Police Staffing Studies’ »
In March 1985, Durham city officials received a comprehensive analysis of their Public Safety Program, a combined fire and police system in place since 1970. The study concluded that both services could be improved and their costs lowered by either modifying the PSO program, or eventually separating the two services. City officials chose the latter. …
Continue reading ‘Durham Public Safety Program Study, 1985’ »
On Thursday, February 13, 2020, a community meeting was held in eastern Wake County, to present a proposed merger of the Eastern Wake Fire Department with the town of Knightdale and its fire department. During the meeting, a town-commissioned 2018 study of the Knightdale Fire Department was heavily referenced. Here’s that document: www.legeros.com/blog/docs/2018-knightdale-study.pdf The four …
For your Tuesday enjoyment, here’s a new interactive Google My Maps of Raleigh fire station locations past and present. Even includes pictures! View the fire station map.