On 9/29/1902 a Stockton, California firefighter “was fatally burned as he attempted to drive the horse cart between two burning structures at the Pavilion fire. The Pavilion fire was one of the largest fires in Stockton.” On 9/29/1908 a Dallas, Texas firefighter died “while … [Read more...]
FIREFIGHTER HISTORY 9/28
On 9/28/1800 the first fireboats arrived in the United States. “New York City (NY) volunteer firefighters first mounted a crude hand-operated pump on a small boat, the era of the American fireboat was born. The fireboat would not become a mainstay of the American fire service; … [Read more...]
FIREFIGHTER HISTORY 9/27
On 9/27/1898 a San Jose, California firefighter was killed, and several other firefighters were injured when a fire roared through the Hotel Vendome, a large elegant four-story hotel located near downtown San Jose, California. The firefighter was operating a hose line on the … [Read more...]
FIREFIGHTER HISTORY 9/26
On 9/26/1898 a San Jose, California firefighter died “while manning a hose line with other members of his company on the second floor of the old Vendome Hotel on North First Street, shortly before midnight. The firefighter was caught in a sudden collapse of the rear wall and … [Read more...]
FIREFIGHTER HISTORY 9/25
On 9/25/2003 a four-story nursing home fire killed fourteen, and injured twenty-five (twenty critically) in Nashville, Tennessee. Most of the 120 residents were bedridden and unable to escape; firefighters carried many elderly occupants downstairs and ladders. The concrete … [Read more...]
FIREFIGHTER HISTORY 9/24
On 9/24/1928 the Teatro de Novedades theater fire in Madrid, Spain killed up to three hundred persons, one report placed the death toll at 68, a second suggests 100, and a third estimated 300 and 200 injured. Hundreds were trampled in the panic that followed an explosion and fire … [Read more...]
FIREFIGHTER HISTORY 9/23
On 9/23/2005 a fire on a bus near Dallas, Texas killed twenty-four of the thirty-eight elderly residents and six employees evacuating from Hurricane Rita on a gridlocked highway. The fire was accelerated by patients’ oxygen making it too hot to rescue the victims. The fire may … [Read more...]