SHOP TALK: Fire at group home in Philadelphia kills 1, injures 2

The Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA - A fire at a group home for the disabled in Philadelphia killed one man and injured two others after they were trapped on the third floor.

Flames were visible from the second floor of the three-story row house in the city's Fairmount section. About a dozen physically or mentally disabled men in their 50s and 60s lived there.

Three men were trapped during the blaze early Saturday morning. One died and two were taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers says the fire was confined to the second floor front.

The fire marshal's office is investigating the cause. LINK

It was about quarter of four this morning when a police car went flying past the station at about warp nine, siren blasting. That woke me up out of a dead sleep. Then the trash truck showed up and began emptying the dumpsters from behind the restaurants across the alley from the firehouse. Sleep was pretty much over from that point on.

I heard the box hit in as I lay there in my bunk. The PA is usually pretty loud, but at that hour when the only person awake is the man on watch, it seemed to blare right through the cinder block walls. From the amount of radio traffic I could hear, I was pretty sure it was a job. I debated getting up and going out to the watch desk to listen up but decided against it. I knew the location was close but not exactly sure where. It wouldn't take long to find out.

When an alarm comes in at the firehouse, the man on watch hits a couple of buttons. One opens the bay doors for the trucks. The others are the house lights and bells. The house lights light up every room in the station. Every room has a bell as well. When you are asleep or laying in your bunk in a pitch black room, the effect of this process is pretty close to a shot of Adrenaline straight to the heart, even if you think your ready for it. All the while the man on watch repeatedly yells out the address of the fire for the drivers, and our position (Front, Rear etc.) for the officers.

So it was at 0400 this morning. The job I was half listening to turned out to be close enough for us to make. We were sent as the Rapid Intervention Team. Our job was to stand by once we got on location and be prepared to go in and rescue one of our Firefighters in case they got into trouble. 99% of the time nothing goes wrong and it turns out to be a boring but necessary assignment.

When we got on location there was a lot of smoke still visible from down the street. The radio reports were that people were being rescued from the rear of the building. This was a four story residential dwelling that was turned into a group home. Such places are common throughout Philly. They can present real challenges from subdivided rooms to residents who are incapable of self rescue.

There was heavy fire on the second floor, front of this dwelling with heavy smoke throughout. It wasn't long after we arrived that conditions began to improve. The Medics were scrambling to treat the injured who had been removed when one of the Ladder Companies reported that another victim had been located on the third floor, above the fire. We listened to their reports as they were trying to bring the victim out. They were having a tough time of it.

In Hollywood movies, firemen toss people over their shoulders and sachet right through the flames. In reality people are dead weight and it is incredibly difficult to move a two hundred pound man while your wearing eighty pounds of gear yourself. Add to this a thirty inch hallway with furniture, debris, hose line and other firemen and the task quickly becomes nearly impossible.

The Chief must have been aware of these factors when he ordered me and my guys to go in and assist with the rescue. Although we have one very specific task as the RIT team, firefighting demands flexibility when Human Life is at stake. We immediately made our way to the second floor where we encountered the firemen trying to bring the victim out. As anticipated they were having a tough time. They were physically spent and this guy was big.

Sometimes too many cooks spoil the broth. In a situation like this, most firemen being Alpha Males all want to have their hands in the operation. Sometimes all you need is a little coordination to make things go a whole lot smoother. When we came in we brought a rescue basket with us. It turned out to be just the ticket. We were able to get the man into the basket and strap him in securely. From that point on it was just a matter of passing him from man to man down the stairs and out to the Medics. Sadly he died despite the near superhuman effort. While we were bringing him down, other firemen were helping another mentally challenged man right behind the first. He was on the same floor as the man who died, yet he will be fine.