Wake County Fire Commission Meeting – January 9, 2025

The Wake County Fire Commission meets on Thursday, January 9, 2024, at 6:00 p.m., at the Wake County Emergency Services Education Center, 221 S. Rogers Lane, Raleigh, NC 27610.

View agenda and meeting documents.

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Two Alarms on Polly Street

Listen to radio traffic | See photos from the Raleigh Professional Fire Fighters Association, in this Facebook posting.

Two alarms were struck at 3800 Polly Street on December 30, 2024. Dispatched about 10:07 p.m. Two-story apartment building with four units and 3,996 squre-feet. Built 1995, from tax records. Operated by a non-profit as transitional housing for families experiencing homelessness, it was later reported. 

Engine 12 first-arriving. Second alarm struck within a couple minutes. Fire found on first floor and extending to attic.  Controlled at 10:54 p.m.  No injuries reported. 

Run card included:
1st: E12 E21 E11 L1 L6 Sq7 R16 B2 B5 ISO14
W/F: A10 B3 DC1 INV1
2nd: E3 E9 E27 L15
Added: L4


Raleigh Professional Fire Fighters Association photo


Raleigh Professional Fire Fighters Association photo

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Run Numbers 2024

Run numbers for Raleigh for 2024. Here they are and now including incident type totals and a quick historical comparison.

Overall Summary

Total incidents – 58,166
Total per-unit runs – 83,697

Historical Comparison

  2024 2023 2022
Total Incidents 58,166 54,746 53,238
Total Per-Unit Runs 83,697 77,425 73,166

Here’s a PDF document with numbers from 1993 to 2022. It’s due for updating, 

Incident Types, Largest to Smallest Counts

35,501 – Rescue & EMS
8,173 – Good Intent Call
6,872 – False Alarm & False Call
4,197 – Service Call
1,844 – Hazards-No Fire
1,288 – Fire
237 – Special Incidents
37 – Overpressure-No Fire
17 – Severe Weather
0 – Other

Runs Per Unit

E01 – 2515
E02 – 2962
E03 – 3212
E04 – 1700
E05 – 1696
E06 – 1548
Sq07 – 3002
E08 – 2298
E09 – 2262
E10 – 2299
E11 – 3118
E12 – 3126
E13 – 2502
Sq14 – 2226
E15 – 3239
E16 – 2587
E17 – 1708
E18 – 1565
E19 – 3291
E20 – 2041
E21 – 2483
E22 – 2179
E23 – 1304
E24 – 1636
E25 – 1197
E26 – 1690
E27 – 1093
E28 – 1205
E29 – 513
 
L01 – 2413
L04 – 1214
L06 – 1655
L12 – 2162
L14 – 1428
L15 – 2178
L20 – 1030
L22 – 1346
L23 – 1197
 
R16 – 1361
 
B1 – 444
B2 – 682
B3 – 756
B4 – 458
B5 – 1031
 
DC1 – 139
 
Air 10 – 78
Air 28 – 78
 
Chief Investigator – 44
Investigator 1 – 194
 
ISO14 – 1050
Safety Chief – 3
 
Mini 07 – 40
Mini 14 – 42
Mini 28 – 4
 
HM02 – 67
HM08 – 82
HM22 – 19
HM27 – 80
HM29 – 65
HM Program Manager – 18
 
ATV 14 – 29
ATV 22 – 7
High Water 17 – 18
USAR 801 – 41
Rehab 12 – 17
Chaplain – 27

Top Engines
E 19 – 3291
E 15 – 3239
E 03 – 3212
E 12 – 3126
E 11 – 3118

Top Ladders
L01 – 2413
L15 – 2178
L12 – 2162

Top Battalion Chiefs
B5 – 1031
B3 – 756
B2 – 682

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Raleigh Fire Department Fleet Updates – December 2024

This is a version of a Facebook posting on December 13, 2024. 

What’s up with Raleigh Fire Department fleet updates, you ask? Here’s an infographic that tells that story.

They’re in the thick of a long-overdue upgrade of their pumpers, both frontline and reserve. Plus a new air truck and new ladders next year and the year after.

About the graphic? Built using Illustrator, with drawings via the Atlantic Emergency Solutions page on Facebook. Thank you, search feature. 

View infographic as JPG | PDF

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New Sandy Plains Public Safety Station

At last week’s Wake County Fire Commission, county staff provided information on the long-planned “northern hook” station for far northern Wake County. The site has been selected, a concept design has been created, and a project timeline has been established. Here are the details:

  • Name – Sandy Plains Public Safety Station
  • Agencies Using – Northern Wake Fire, Wake County EMS, plus working space for Wake County Sheriff’s Office
  • Location – Boyce Bridge Road and Highway 50
  • Conceptual Specs – One-story. Three bays, double deep.
  • Limitations – Falls Lake watershed, so limited amount of impervious surface, e.g. apron, parking lot, etc.

Background

For decades, the property owners in that area of Wake County have been underserved due to long travel times from the nearest fire station(s). They have also received the lowest fire protection rating due to the distance from a fire station, and thus have incurred higher fire insurance rates than the rest of the county.

The new Northwest District will comprise 10.65 square-miles and protect $87M of real property (buildings). The new station will greatly improve the ability of delivering an effective firefighting force within the standards established by the county and based on NFPA-recognized standards.

It also encompasses Falls Lake and those recreation areas. They see over 500,000 visitors annually, including the boat ramps. Since 2019, Northern Wake Fire has responded to over 55 incidents involving drownings, water rescues, and boat-related emergencies. The new station will improve response times for these incident types as well.

Timeframe

  • Design development – May 31, 2025
  • Construction drawings – June 15, 2025
  • Bidding & contracting – July 31, 2025
  • Construction notice to proceed – September 15, 2025
  • Construction substantial completion – October 15, 2026

Map and Drawing


New fire district shown in purple. Current Northern Wake Fire response area shown in yellow.

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Relocating Fire Station 3 – Construction Update

This is an ongoing blog posting about the project to relocate Raleigh Fire Station 3.

Contents 

  • Feb 2025 – Construction Update
  • Nov 2024 – Design + Public Art Unveiled
  • Nov 2024 – Community Meeting Scheduled
  • Oct 2024 – Site Clearing Started
  • Aug 2024 – Construction Bid Awarded
  • May 2024 – Construction Bids Solicited
  • Mar 2022 – Call for Artists
  • Mar 2022 – Official Project Site
  • May 2021 – Design Contract Awarded
  • Nov 2017 – Property Purchased
  • Earlier Project History
  • Legacy Station 3

February 2025 – Construction Update

Here’s an aerial view of the construction that’s underway.

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See more photos.

November 2024 – Design + Public Art Unveiled

At a community meeting on November 14, 2024, the building designs and the public art designs were unveiled in a community meeting.

During a two-hour community meeting on Thursday, November 14, information about the project was presented by Fire Chief Herbert Griffin, Asst. Chief Danny Poole, Division Chief Scott White, and Eric Sowers of Huffman Architects.

The guest speaker was fire department historian Mike Legeros, who presented a short history of Station 3 and its connection to the department’s volunteer era and the Victor Company, that first occupied the later original location of Station 3.

Notable features of new Station 3 include electric charging capabilities for both passenger vehicles and fire apparatus. The station will house the city’s first electric fire engine. It was also designed with the capacity to add a third apparatus bay, if expansion is required.

Also of note is an outdoor public art installation created by Maxwell Emcays. It features a lighted a “history walk” of the fire department milestones going back to the first volunteer fire companies.

The new station is planned for completion in December 2025. Planning for the project started in (or before) 2014. The site was acquired in 2018.

Watch the video: Granicus | YouTube.

View the history slides (PDF) 

Continue reading ‘Relocating Fire Station 3 – Construction Update’ »

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Broughton Hospital Fire Brigade

Remembering the Broughton Hospital Fire Brigade in Morganton. The hospital opened in 1883 as the Western North Carolina Insane Asylum. It state’s second psychiatric hospital, after one was established in Raleigh. The new hospital was built on a 283-acre site, just south of downtown Morganton. In 1885 and 1886, two new wings were added, expanding the hospital’s bed space to over 500 patients. In 1890, the hospital’s name was changed to the State Hospital at Morganton. The name was changed to Broughton Hospital in 1959. The campus was added to the National Register of Historic Properties in 1987. Source: Wikipedia.  

Early Decades

The hospital fire brigade began operating in 1890. Source: North Carolina ECHO. 

The News-Herald on June 6, 1907 reported that planned Fourth of July events included a tournament by the “Morganton and State Hospital fire companies, with hose and ladder contests.” Reported the newspaper on July 4, both fire companies participated in the Fourth of July parade. 

By June 1900, the hospital had a two-story brick fire station located about 75 behind the male wards section. The hospital had its own water system including a duplex fire pump. Fire equipment included 2,000 feet of 1 1/2-inch hose, 1,000 feet of which was on hand reels, and a hook and ladder truck. The fire company was comprised of employees who conducted a fire drill every month. The same information applied in 1910 and 1915. Source: Sanborn Maps. 

By September 1924, the fire equipment consisted of two hand hose carts, one hook and ladder truck, and one American LaFrance “auto combination hose truck and pump, 750 GPM.” The fire station location had not changed. Source: Sanborn Maps.


Courtesy Broughton Hospital Public Safety


Courtesy Broughton Hospital Public Safety

Later Decades

By August 1931, the earlier fire station building behind the men’s ward was being used for storage. The fire station location was TBD. The same fire equipment was described as above. Source: Sanborn Maps.  

Sanborn Maps from 1950 listed an American LaFrance pumper, 750 GPM, 40 gallon chemical tank, 1,500 feet 2 1/2-inch hose, 200-feet 3/4-inch hose. 

The last fire station location was a one-story, two-bay addition to the presently-named Moran Building. Date TBD for construction of the fire station. 

The fire brigade disbanded in the 1970s, when the city took over fire protection. Source: Oral history. 

 
November 2006 – Mike Legeros photos

North Carolina ECHO photos. Artifacts displayed in the Avery Building, June 2006, https://digital.ncdcr.gov/Documents/Detail/broughton-hospital-patient-library/59490

Fire Apparatus

The hospital’s first piece of motor apparatus was a 1924 American LaFrance Type 75 triple combination. From oral history accounts, it may have served as late as 1970, when a second pumper was purchased. John Peckham’s American LaFrance database lists the truck delivered to the state hospital in “Morgantown.” Shipped August 28, 1924. Order #445, serial #4791, truck ID #11479, negative #5788. Sold to Jackie Lee[1] in North Carolina in 1993. 

The hospital’s last piece of a fire apparatus was a 1970 American LaFrance 900 Series pumper, 1500/500. It was sold to Black Mountain Fire Department by October 1974, after the hospital fire department ceased operating and fire protection was taken over by the city. The city also purchased one at the same time. [ Note: The hospital’s 1970 pumper was not disposed to the city, as incorrectly cited on earlier versions of these research notes. ]

[1] Lee was a member of the Fayetteville Fire Department and a lifelong antique fire apparatus collector and mechanic. 

Artifacts displayed in the Avery Building, June 2006. Photo by North Carolina ECHO, https://digital.ncdcr.gov/Documents/Detail/broughton-hospital-patient-library/59490


Black Mountain News, October 3, 1974.

Fires at the Hospital

November 19, 1959 – Barn that was used for drying hay burned to the ground. Morganton firefighters also responded. They were called to the hospital at 9:20 p.m. and responded with two trucks. Seven members of the Burke County Rescue Squad also responded, but had difficulty reaching the scene because of some 75 cars that were following the two town trucks. Many bystanders arrived before some of the volunteer firemen and delayed them and rescue squad members. The frame-building and some 400 bushels of corn were destroyed. Source: Hickory Daily Record, November 20, 1959.

Sanborn Maps


Sanborn Map, 1910


Sanborn Map, 1924

Sources 

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Wake County Fire Commission Meeting – November 14, 2024

The Wake County Fire Commission meets on Thursday, November 14, 2024, at 6:00 p.m., at the Wake County Emergency Services Education Center, 221 S. Rogers Lane, Raleigh, NC 27610.

View agenda and meeting documents.

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Two Alarms on Walden Pond Drive

Mike Legeros photo

See more photos by Legeros | Listen to radio traffic

Two alarms were struck in north Raleigh on Wednesday night, October 30, 2024. Dispatched 10:56 p.m. for 4750 Walden Pond Drive. Three-story multi-unit residential building with [goes here] square-feet, in complex off Millbrook Road. Built 1974, from tax records.

Upgraded to working fire while units were en route. Engine 15 first arriving with fire on all three floors. Two units were well-involved and soon with extension into the attic space over three units. Second alarm was requested. Staging on Millbrook Road at Walenda Drive.

Battalion 5 in command in the front of the building, later Division Chief 1.

Second-due Engine 19 with supply line to Engine 15. Engine 9 boosting to Engine 15. Second hydrant later connected to Engine 11 [for supplying Ladder 4?]. [ Others? ]

Crews withdrawn for aerial operations from second-due Ladder 4, positioned in the front of the building. Crews resumed interior work, after aerial operations. 

Controlled at 11:50 p.m. Crews stayed on scene for several hours.

From news reports, six units damaged, no injuries. [goes here] residents were displaced. 

Also, the same complex as 4707 Walden Pond Drive, location of a two-alarm fire in same complex on February 4, 2023.

Run Card

  • First Alarm – E19 E15 E11 E99 L15 L4 B5 B1 R16 ISO14
  • Working Fire – DC1 A28 INV1
  • Second Alarm – E27 E16 E21 L22 L6
  • Added – Safety Chief, Logistic Chief, Rehab 12, E20
  • Medical – M12 M48 EMS51 D4

Mike Legeros photos

 

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Wake County Fire Stations Infographic

With a number of new fire stations recently opened in Wake County in the last year–Apex, Fuquay-Varina, Garner, two in Knightdale, and Morrisville–let’s look at all engine house across the county. Here’s new infographic with their pictures.

Photo credits: Google Street and Legeros. 

View as JPG (3.9M) | PDF (4.3M)

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