On June 17, 1893, Wilmington volunteer fireman Joseph Ballister Willard died in the line of duty. He was a member of Hook and Ladder Company No. 1, and was killed when a wall collapsed at a warehouse fire. The fire started at 2:00 a.m. at a brick warehouse on Water Street, which stored about 400 …
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Back in the day, code words were used when requesting mutual aid from neighboring towns and cities. This was done to verify the authenticity of the requestor. The concept was first proposed at the 1950 conference of the North Carolina State Firemen’s Association. And enacted that year (I believe, need to check). By the time …
Earlier this month, Mr. Blogger gave a presentation at the South Atlantic Fire Rescue Expo. The topic was Preserving Your Fire Department’s Heritage. He’s posted a copy of his presentation slides (PDF, 22M). They’re heavily annotated, with versions of his spoken remarks and other errata. The outline: Introduction What is history? Learning your history Preserving …
Here’s some amusing fire history, from a friend, from the Asheville Citizen, February 10, 1907. Read closely. Click to enlarge:
How about some vintage meeting minute excerpts for your hysterical historical enjoyment? These are from the Raleigh Fire Fighters Association, Local No. 548, as transcribed by Yours Truly. Read many more at http://legeros.com/ralwake/raleigh/history/union/ 1942 – Meeting came to order at 10:30 a.m. followed by prayer by all members. Motion made and carried that men at work …
City firefighters have been busy of late. Working fires have been happening seemingly daily, over the last couple weeks. This morning, south-side companies were dispatched to 2126 Sanderford Road. Engine 10 first-due. Dispatched about 7:20 a.m. With the run card E10 E2 E12 SQ7 L2 L8 R1 B2 B3. Actual fire address was 2120 Sanderford Road. …
Continue reading ‘This Morning’s Fire on Sanderford Road / Bit of Black Firefighter History’ »
Morning AfterThis was solved within about twenty minutes on the Facebook side. Ex-Durham FD, former Rescue 1, later renamed Squad 1. Picture from the late 1990s or early 2000s, by Legeros: Night BeforeFrom a reader, this former “Squad 1” was seen in Garner, near the Quarry. Looks like a 1990s International. Someone will surely ID …
Last week, the City of Raleigh revealed a new logo design, and to a wide range of reactions. Google for those. Back in the day, a pair of Raleigh rigs sported the city’s earlier logo, the city seal. Those were the 1950 Mack and the 1950 FWD, pictured below. How might a modern truck look …
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Let’s look some uses of the word “service” in the fire service, starting with “Service Company.” That’s a descriptor from the Insurance Services Office (ISO), used in their Fire Suppression Rating Schedule. Service companies operate service trucks (see below) and ISO awards points for specific equipment carried therein. See this page[1] of information. [1] Link …
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On June 30, 1996, at 20:10 hours, the Cary Fire Department placed its first rescue company in service. Though they operated a volunteer-staffed Civil Defense rescue truck in the mid- to late-1950s, this was their first “modern-era” rescue company. The new company and the added role of rescue provider resulted from an agreement with the Cary …
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