Shortly before 1:25 A.M. on the morning of Christmas Eve, John Whiteside got a very strange phone call. He received a direct call from Cal Fire dispatch in Morgan Hill requesting FASCV aid at a fire west of Gilroy. Usually, a page is sent out from Sonitrol, but, this time, Cal Fire was calling directly. It seems that, since John is a VIP volunteer with Cal Fire, a Cal Fire Battalion chief was specifically calling John for our help. It was a very cold morning and he did not have any other rehab resources.
John Whiteside responded in Support Unit 2 to the incident at 5165 Redwood Retreat Road deep in the hills west of Gilroy. The structure was an old ranch-style home that looked like it had be added onto on more than one occasion. The first-in engine companies made a very good stop on what was potentially a very destructive fire. As fires go, this was not a very large incident, but, FASCV help was needed because of the sub-32 degree temperatures. John was met on scene by Mike Chappell and John Whitaker. Hot coffee was in great demand!
The Support Unit was released from service at 4:15 A.M.
On Wednesday morning, December 16, San Jose Fire called for Fire Associates aid. The page for help was sent out at 2:16 A.M. and John Whiteside responded in Support Unit 2 to 158 Avenida Espana. He was met on scene by John Whitaker and later joined by FASCV members Jerry Haag and Mike Chappell.
Located just off Santa Teresa Blvd., in the extreme southern portion of San Jose, the 2-alarm fire consumed most of a one-story residence. The home was occupied by an elderly couple and their middle-aged son. The mother and father escaped the inferno, but their son did not. Initial reports indicated that he had initially made it out of the structure and possibly went back in, but that has not been confirmed as of this writing.
FASCV members were kept busy providing hot coffee on a cold and windy morning. Eventually, a light rain began to fall -- just enough to help make the morning more cold and miserable. Along about 4:00 A.M., FASCV was instructed to order 30 breakfast burritos for emergency personnel on scene. The challenge was to find a place open at that hour that could provide the meals. A 24-hr. Jack-in-the-Box, located several miles away, fit the bill. Meals were then picked up and served.
Support Unit 2 was released at approximately 6:15 A.M.
On December 12, at a little after 8:00 P.M., the Sunnyvale Department of Pubic Safety called for Fire Associates' support. The call was for a 2nd-alarm fire burning in a single-family residence at 731 Shasta Fir Drive. Bob Gundrum responded in Support Unit 1. He was joined on scene by Jerry Haag, Ron Green, Len Williams and guest, Dan Wong. Jerry has provided this report:
Date: 12 Dec. 2009 Time: 1915 initial fire dispatch, 2002 Sonitrol dispatch, 2005 arrival, released at 2200. Type: Structure fire Size: Second alarm Jurisdiction: Sunnyvale Location: 731 Shasta Fir Dr.
Details: Single-story dwelling. Engine 2 first on scene on A side. Engine 4 covered C side from Sequoia Drive. Ultimately, E-2 supplied six handlines and a 5" supply to Truck 1's elevated master stream. Two persons and a dog displaced.
Units in attendance: SNY: E-1, 2, 3, 4, 30, 40; T-1, 2; R-2; Med-7; and Batt. 3 (Pitts) MTV and SNC provided station coverage.
Responding Members: Gundrum (driver), Green, Haag, Williams, Wong (guest) Fire Support Unit Responding: FSU-1
Interesting addendum to this story from Len Williams:
Sunnyvale responded around 4:45 or 5:00 a.m. today (Tues., Dec. 15) to a re-kindle on the 2nd-alarm house fire from Sat. night.
I talked to Bob Gundrum a few minutes ago, and he said that the house had steel shingles, put on over the original wood shingle roof. No wonder it was such a hot fire!
The re-kindle didn't amount to much, since Engine 2 was going back in service around 1/2 hr. later when I got up.
Early Sunday morning, Dec. 6, SJFD called for Fire Associates assistance at a 3rd-alarm fire west of downtown. FSU #2 with John Whiteside responded to the 2:14 A.M. call at 150 S. Montgomery. Don Gilbert later joined in the effort. John has submitted this report:
Large, single-story modular offices of a security company on Los Gatos Creek side of Autumn Street -- between Park Ave. and W. San Fernando Street. From discussions, apparently homeless folks used a portable BBQ as a warming fire behind a minivan near the front of building’s entrance area. A small tree ignited and spread to the building. Seems that only 1 unit suffered interior damage.
The second page (indicating that I was responding) came out 5 minutes after the request page. As I was leaving home, I heard the IC ask about FASCV’s status and dispatch said they didn’t know. I immediately used my HT and told them I was enroute to Station 6 to get the rig with a 15-min. ETA. This was later relayed to the IC with other traffic. I left Station 6 at 0258 hrs.
On arrival, Med 30 was very happy to see me. Temps were in the low 30s. There were multiple companies in rehab, and many wanted Gatorade or coffee. It took awhile to set everything up and get the coffee going. Later, Don arrived after waking up to low battery tones on his pager and seeing the dispatch. We were released near 0545.
The fire had the potential of growing in size and the weather was cold, which may have contributed to the multi-alarm response. It was B shift on duty.
On Nov. 30 at 9:45 A.M., Santa Clara County Fire called for Fire Associates help at a 2nd-alarm fire in Morgan Hill. The fire was burning in a 4-plex apartment unit located at 18216 Hale Ave. in Morgan Hill. John Whitaker answered the call with Support Unit 2. He was met on scene by George Hoyt and Mike Chappell. Mike lives only a few blocks away from this address.
The fire started on the second floor on the 2-story townhouse. An unattended candle was apparently the cause. Adequate fire blocks in the structure kept the severe damage limited to the involved unit and minor damage occurred in one adjoining apartment. First-arriving fire crews found flames rolling out of the bedroom window and a second alarm was called almost immediately. Everyone made it out of the apartment safely and firefighters were busy on scene until the early afternoon with overhaul.
Fire Associates set up rehab on Hale Ave., just west of the fire scene. With bright blue autumn skies and little wind, Gatorade, water and Cliff Bars were in demand on an afternoon when temperatures reached into the lows 70s. Support Unit 2 was released from the scene at 12:45 P.M. and was back in quarters by 1:30 P.M.
On Tuesday morning, Nov. 24, at 6:48 A.M., Fire Associates was paged to a fire in Santa Clara. Located at the intersection of Bowers Ave. and Kifer Rd., the fire was burning in a Carl's Jr. Restaurant. Jerry Haag responded in Support Unit 1 and was met by FASCV members Ron Green and Bob Gundrum. Jerry has submitted this report:
Date: 24 Nov. 2009 Time: 0648 Sonitrol dispatch, 0705 arrival, released at 0815. Type: Structure fire Size: Second alarm Jurisdiction: City of Santa Clara Location: 2900 Bowers Ave.
Details: Carl's Jr. Restaurant. Origin in a piece of cooking equipment, spread up into ceiling space then to mansard concealed space. Initial structural response was at about 0500. SNC Engine 9 provided three 1-3/4" hand lines and a 5" supply to an elevated master stream from SNC Truck 2.
Units in attendance: SNC: E-3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10; T-2, 8; R-2; HM-9; Med-5; & Batt.-1
Responding Members: Haag (driver), Green, Gundrum Fire Support Unit Responding: FSU-1
At 11:47 P.M. on Nov. 20, Santa Clara County Fire requested Fire Associates assistance for a 2nd-alarm fire in Campbell. The fire was burning in a 7-Eleven convenience store at 262 W. Sunnyoaks Avenue -- near the intersection with Winchester Blvd. Don Gilbert answered the call with Support Unit 2. He was met on scene by John Whitaker and Mike Chappell.
Firefighters were faced with two issues -- limited access to the structure and an extensive amount of smoke. Although called a "convenience" store, the fire was anything but. The building was located adjacent to a combination Vallero gas station/Deli -- it literally butted up against the non-involved gas station. The cinder-block wall of the gas station acted as a very-effective fire wall and kept the active fire from spreading. County Truck 1 was able to "reach" over the gas station/Deli and attack the flames from above. The front of the 7-Eleven was accessible, but a large quantity of smoke initially kept firefighters at a distance. Adding to the difficulty, CNT Engine 10 was away from its Sunnyoaks Station on another call at the time of the fire. Sunnyoaks Station is located 2 blocks west of the incident. CNT Truck 5 was first-in and had to use its pumps for the initial hand-line attack.
With temperatures dipping into the low 40s, rehab was kept busy making many pots of coffee. Once again, cold and wet firefighters were very happy to see Fire Associates on scene. Support Unit 2 was not released until 4:00 A.M. after a long, cold Fall morning.
On Tuesday morning, Nov. 17, Palo Alto Fire called for a 2nd-alarm response at a large condo building. Located at 360 Everett Ave., the fire apparently began on the ground floor of a 5-story complex. Jerry Haag answered the 5:15 A.M. page and responded in Fire Support Unit 1. He was met by FASCV member Ron Green. Jerry has written the following report:
Date: 17 Nov. 2009 Time: 0445 second alarm sounded, 0515 Sonitrol dispatch, 0545 arrival, released at 0715. Type: Structure fire Size: Second alarm Jurisdiction: City of Palo Alto Location: 360 Everett Ave.
Details: Five story condominium building. Fire started on a first-floor patio on the "B" side (possibly due to a barbeque), spread to a second-floor porch but was prevented from entering the second floor dwelling unit by effective fire operations and fire resistive construction on the underside of the porch. Palo Alto Engine 1 was first in with water supply provided by Menlo Engine 1 on auto-aid. The fire was quickly extinguished with minimal overhaul so auto-aid and second alarm apparatus was already being released as FS-1 arrived at the scene.
Units in attendance: PAF: E-1, 3, 4, 6, T-6, R-2, ALS-1, B-6, IC was Acting B/C, Capt. Morris MTV: E-1, T-1, B-18 (B/C Del Carlo) MNL: E-1 (auto-aid)
Responding Members: Haag (driver), Green Fire Support Unit Responding: FSU-1
On Friday night, Nov. 13, San Jose Fire called for Fire Associates service at 12:07 A.M. An 8-plex apartment building had caught fire around 11:00 P.M. Located at 5506 Makati Circle, the fire was burning in the middle of a larger apartment development on the city's southeast side. Don Gilbert responded in Support Unit 2. He was met on scene by John Whiteside, Ron Green and John Whitaker.
The fire appeared to have started in a lower-floor apartment and then spread upwards into the top-floor of the building. Flames were through the roof as the first units arrived. There were 3 ladders flowing water at one time with plenty of hydrants for 5” hoses. Despite the tight confines, there were no access problems as driveways allowed the trucks to drive right up to the fire building. It was especially interesting to see Truck 13, one of San Jose's two new tillered aerials, navigate the small driveways with ease. Firefighters commented that the building's construction help to prevent the fire from spreading to the rest of the large complex. The cool fall night air meant that hot coffee was in demand at rehab.
On Monday night, November 2, Fire Associates was paged for a fire burning in the Calderon Tire building. John Whiteside, who had been listening to his scanner, was already in route to get Support Unit 2 when the 10:45 P.M. page was issued. John was met on scene by FASCV members Mike Chappell, John Whitaker and Brian Woodson.
Located near the northwest corner of South First Street and Union Ave., the fire was burning tires and other garage-type material stored inside the old, brick building. Soon after arriving, San Jose Fire declared it a defensive event and hit the fire with three master-streams from Trucks 1, 3 and 4. At the height of the fire, flames were reported to be shooting 65 to 70 feet high.
Support 2 provided coffee, donuts and water to some tired firefighters on a relatively mild Fall evening. After the main blaze had been knocked down, Foam 29 was called into service to supply Truck 3 and eventually bring the fire under control. By daybreak, the cause of the fire was still under investigation.
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Reminder: FASCV is a non-profit, tax-deductible organization per Federal tax code, Section 501(c)4.
