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For the third time in the last four responses, Fire Associates again was called to the city of Morgan Hill. Located at 16500 Oak Glen, this time the fire was in a rural part of the city. Responding at 8:13 A.M. to a special request from Cal Fire was John Whiteside in Support Unit 2. He was later joined on scene by John Whitaker and his wife, Liz. Dropping by for a "look-see" was FASCV member Brian Woodson, who was on his way to a nearby jobsite. FASCV member Mike Chappell was on scene early as part of Cal Fire's firefighting effort.
The fire fully involved a 1,200 sq. ft., wood-framed home on the property of a small horse ranch. The single occupant of the residence was able to escape the inferno without injury. Fire crews from Santa Clara County, South County Fire District and Cal Fire responded to the event. Fire Associates provided coffee and cold beverages on a bright, sunny and unusually warm Winter morning. Later, FASCV helped with the distribution of lunch-time burritos for the hungy crews. FASCV remained on scene until being released shortly after 1:00 P.M.
The arrival of the New Year saw Fire Associates respond to yet another fire in Morgan Hill. Like our Dec. 23rd response, this one was on the West side of town...but, this time, several condos were on fire. Paged by Santa Clara County Fire at 1:50 P.M. to 149 Del Monte, Don Gilbert and John Whiteside responded in Support Unit 2 and were aided on scene by Mike Chappell, John Whitaker and George Hoyt.
The fire was located on the second floor in the middle of the complex. This made access difficult for the fire crews who responded. On scene were rigs from Santa Clara County Fire, South County Fire District, Gilroy and San Jose. Normally, on a Winter afternoon in January, you might think that hot coffee would be the popular choice. But, with temperatures in the mid 70s, it was lemonade and water that disappeared quickly. FASCV members were asked to remain on scene to help serve an evening meal to the overhaul crews. The Support Unit was not returned to quarters until after 7:00 P.M.
"Twas the night before Christmas..." -- actually, it was the night of Christmas when Fire Associates was paged by Santa Clara County Fire. At 9:55 P.M., on December 25, FASCV was called to a 2nd-alarm fire at 103 Ash Court (anybody see the irony?) in Los Gatos. John Whiteside responded in Support Unit 2 and was met on scene by Don Gilbert and John Whitaker.
The fire severely damaged a home at the end of a long, uphill cul-de-sac. Most of the fire equipment had to be parked short of the fire with firefighters carrying in a lot of the necessary equipment. That was no different for Fire Associates. With the Support Unit parked downhill from the incident, coffee was carried up to the scene in air-pots and water was carried up in an ice chest. With nighttime temperatures in the high 30s, and the wind whipping at an estimated 40 mph, hot coffee was in high demand. Gloves and heavy coats were the garments of choice!
FASCV personnel were on scene until well after midnight.
On Tuesday morning, December 23, Fire Associates was paged by Santa Clara County Fire to 18445 Shadowbrook Way in Morgan Hill. Responding to the 5:14 A.M. page was John Whiteside and Don Gilbert in Support Unit 2. Meeting them on scene were Mike Chappell and John Whitaker. Mike lives only a few blocks from the fire scene.
The fire was located to the west of Monterey Hwy., very near County Sta. 12, just up Llagas Rd. The garage of the 2,050 sq. ft. home was fully involved when Eng. 12 arrived on scene. Limited access to the structure hampered early firefighting efforts. The single-story home was located down a long, narrow driveway off the cul-de-sac. As the fire burned in the garage, the residents first awoke when their power went out. They then noticed smoke coming under their bedroom door and evacuated the structure. A Corvette was destroyed in the garage and a Mazda SUV and a pick-up were destroyed and/or damaged in the driveway.
Firefighters were happy to see our donuts and coffee arrive as the early morning weather was cold and damp. Rain was in the vicinity, but fortunately stayed away for the duration of the event. The support unit was released from service shortly before 9:00 A.M.
On December 19, Fire Associates was paged by Santa Clara City Fire to a 2nd-alarm structure fire. Jerry Haag responded to the call in Support Unit 1 to the incident at 1361 Calabazas. Jerry was met on scene by FASCV members Bob Gundrum and George Hoyt.
For the second fire in a row in the City of Santa Clara, Jerry Haag has submitted the following:
"This was a two-story apartment building. The fire (was located) in a front unit on the second floor. The first engine in made an aggressive attack and knocked down the fire before it could get into the attic space. We were paged out at 11:38 A.M. and were back in quarters at 1:45 P.M."
Bob Gundrum supplied the accompanying photo.
On Tuesday, December 16, FASCV was paged at 4:06 PM by Santa Clara City Fire. Bob Gundrum and Jerry Haag responded to the 3rd-alarm fire with Support Unit 1. The fire was located at 2097 Duane Ave.
Jerry Haag submitted the following report:
"It was for an electrical room fire at a small industrial building. There was lots of hazmat in the building but the fire was confined to the room of origin. There was a second alarm response at the fire on Duane, the third was called for station coverage, since they had several simultaneous incidents elsewhere in the city. That situation had them down to one in-service engine at one point. We went through one pot of coffee and a few bottled drinks and returned to quarters about 7:00 PM."
For the last few weeks, things have been quiet on the fire scene in the Santa Clara Valley -- Until today! Fire Associates responded to 3 calls for help. Details follow:
Fire 1) 11:57 P.M. (technically on Dec. 8th), 2nd Alarm, Santa Clara County Fire. John Whiteside responded in Support Unit 2 to 19621 Black Rd. in the hills above Lexington Reservoir. The fire fully consumed a home on Black Arrow Road, about 1,000 feet off the 20000-block of Black Rd. Met on scene by John Whitaker and Don Gilbert, the Support Unit's hot coffee and donuts were well-received by cold firefighters. The Support Unit remained on scene until approximately 5:00 A.M.
Fire 2) 1:13 A.M., 2nd Alarm, Mountain View Fire. Larry Carr and Jerry Haag responded with Support Unit 4 to 2320 California Street. Although canceled en route, Jerry Haag reported that the fire was on a balcony of a two-story apartment building and spread into the second-floor apartment. Quick knockdown by Engine 3. 11 adults and 3 children displaced. The support unit was returned to quarters at approximately 2:50 A.M.
Fire 3) 2:45 P.M., 3rd Alarm, San Jose Fire (see photo above). John Whiteside responded in Support Unit 2 to the call at 1088 Wheat Court in the City's eastern foothills. The fire fully involved a two-story house. John was met on scene by John Whitaker, Fred Oehm, George Hoyt and Mike Chappell. The firefighting efforts were made interesting by a Life Safety Alert for gun powder and ammunition stored in the garage. No detonation occurred, however. Support Unit 2 was released at 5:00 P.M.
John Whitaker's photos from 1088 Wheat Court incident can be seen at: SJS - Wheat Court Fire
Six additional photos can be viewed at: abclocal.go.com
The newly elected officers for Fire Associates were installed at the November monthly meeting. Held on November 6th at Harry's Hofbrau in San Jose, the elected officials were installed by guest-of-honor Kevin Conant, San Jose Fire Dept. Bat. Chief 1A. Chief Conant and his wife, Debbi, were hosted for the evening by incoming president John Whitaker and his wife, Liz.
Elected officers are: John Whitaker, president; Bob Gundrum, vice president; Cliff Smith, treasurer; Stan Kelso, secretary; Jerry Haag, director; and Herman DeKruyff, director. All officer's will serve a two-year term, with the exception of Herman, who will serve the remaining year of his two-year term.
Initial Fund Raising Blows Through Goal!
To date, the drive to purchase a new Support Unit has raised $35,450! This sum, when combined with $20,000 already in the treasury, has given us the $55,000 necessary to make the purchase -- taking advantage of a one-time deal offered by North Bay Ford in Santa Cruz.
But, the drive is not over.
Additional money is now being sought to outfit the rig. A 6,000 kW diesel generator has already been purchased, but we still need such things as a 50-gallon, potable water tank and pump; telescopic area lighting; and an emergency radio console. As soon as this equipment is acquired and installed, the rig will go into service to help Santa Clara county-wide fire departments provided rehab services to their firefighters.
If you wish to contribute, a check can be sent to:
Fire Associates "New Rig Fund"
455 S. Mathilda Ave.
Sunnyvale, CA 94086-7605
Remember, FASCV is a non-profit, tax-deductible organization per Federal Tax Code, Section 501(c)4.
On October 29, at 3:12 P.M., Fire Associates' help was requested by South County Fire. John Whiteside and Don Gilbert responded in Support Unit 2 with Mike Chappell there in a Cal Fire capacity. John Whiteside provided the following details:
"October 29, South County Fire (CAL FIRE), with Gilroy, 3rd-alarm, 1910-era Victorian, Holsclaw Road at Gilman Road. We got a 'heads-up' from Mike who called me on phone to alert of upcoming page. When we left the scene at 1900, they had put so much foam on the ruins that it looked like a snow storm had been through. Unbelievable scene!!! There were 10 “red” rigs, including 2 SSC WTs, plus 2 additional WTs (private and Gilroy public works). Water shuttle required from area of The Outlets due to dry hydrant at scene."
