Archive of posts filed under the Incidents category.

Fayetteville Firefighter David Sharp Died in the Line of Duty – March 17, 2000

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Looking back at the line of duty death of Fayetteville Fire Department Engineer David C. Sharp II on Friday, March 17, 2000. Sharp died after the 1993 Pierce Arrow aerial tower he was driving was struck by a train at the Cumberland Street grade crossing between Orange and Ramsey streets, while returning from an automatic …

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Eight People Killed by Lightning in Sampson County – July 12, 1961

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Transcription of News and Observer story about eight people killed by lightning on July 12, 1961, in Sampson County, NC. Plus news photo from the Greensboro Record.  News and Observer, July 13, 1961 Lightning Kills Eight Near Clinton Bolt Hits Leaf Barn; Ninth Hurt By BILL WOMBLE. CLINTON — A single bolt of lightning flashed …

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Extra Alarms Fires in Raleigh – 1990 to 2025

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Presenting a chart counting extra-alarm (structure) fires in Raleigh from 1990 to 2025. Scroll for source data and editorial comments. See more Raleigh Fire Department (RFD) charts and infographics in this blog post. Editorial Comments This data was hand-compiled by Mike Legeros, based on sources including news reports, RFD photo unit documentation, RFD media releases, …

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Two Alarms at Helping Hands Mission

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Listen to radio traffic | See Legeros photos |  Watch aerial video Two alarms were struck on Sunday morning, March 1, 2026, at the Helping Hands Mission at 623 Rock Quarry Road. Dispatched at 6:32 a.m. as a residential structure fire, from initial caller reports. Large header reported as units were en route. Raleigh Fire Department …

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Transcription of Mecklenburg County House Fire + Interior Collapse + Mayday – March 26, 2026

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Transcription of audio recording of Mecklenburg County house fire + interior collapse + mayday on February 25, 2026. Listen to audio recording (with truncated silence)   Transcribed using MS Word. There are many errors, sorry. Corrections indicated [in brackets]. Important note! Timestamps are locations in the recording and do -not- correspond to the incident chronology. Recording …

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QVC Distribution Center Fire – December 18, 2021

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Top left photo courtesy Red Oak Community Fire Department. Top right photo, screen grab from CBS 17.  Shown the middle and bottom row of photos are ladders from Enfield (Halifax), Winterville (Pitt), Youngsville (Franklin), and Knightdale (Wake). The two tankers are Toisnot (top) and Williamston (bottom). Pics via FB postings from their respective FDs, or …

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Two Alarms on Aldie Court

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Raleigh Professional Fire Fighters photo Two alarms were struck in Raleigh on Tuesday afternoon, February 9, 2026, on Aldie Court, on the far southeast side of the city. Engine 12 was first-arriving, with heavy fire in the rear of a row of townhomes. Quickly knocked down, the fire was controlled in 28 minutes. Most second-alarm …

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Burke County School Explosion – March 17, 1987

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Looking back at the explosion and fire that destroyed Salem Junior High School in Burke County, NC, in March 1987. Tuesday night, March 17, 1987. Address was 1311 Salem Road, south of Morganton. Three-story brick building with 25,000+ square-feet. It was located on a campus that also included two elementary school facilities, a gymnasium, and …

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Broyhill Furniture Factory Fire – January 14, 1976

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Fifty years ago this month, the Broyhill furniture factory in Marion, NC, burned on January 14, 1976. Here are some notes about the incident.  – Wednesday morning. – January 14, 1976. – 11:05 a.m. – Otis L. Broyhill furniture plant on West Henderson Street. [AC, 1/15/76] – Three-story building housed finishing room, where fire stated. …

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Wrightsville Beach Line of Duty Death – December 6, 1981

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This is a version of a Facebook posting from December 6, 2021. On December 6, 1981, Wrightsville Beach volunteer Lt. Robert M. Wynn, 28, died in the line of duty at the Doak Apartments fire. Also severely injured was volunteer firefighter Jon Dennison, 21, who suffered second and third degree burns. At 1:13 a.m. on …

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