FASCV Responds To Second Flood Area In San Jose

 
Date: Feb. 21, 2017
Dispatch: 16:13pm
Location: 1350 Oakland Road, San Jose
Type: Multiple Flood Rescues
FASCV Response: FSU-2, Gilbert, Whiteside and FSU-3 Dembecki
Released 20:45
 
After a busy morning and afternoon, San Jose Fire personnel were presented with continuing flood problems along the Coyote Creek. Having finished a search of the properties in the Nordale area and evacuating more than 200 people, San Jose Fire moved on to a series of problems at several mobile home parks along Oakland Road. Three parks were put under mandatory evacuation orders as the flood waters along the Coyote Creek threatened to overwhelm the barrier walls protecting the parks. Along with minor flooding, several people required rescue and removal by flood boat during the evacuation.
   
Fire Support Unit 2 along with drivers Don Gilbert and John Whiteside responded directly from the earlier incident, while Bruce Dembecki brought FSU 3 to the scene along with fresh supplies.
   
Fire Associates was tasked with acquiring and serving 65 meals… The local Togo’s closed their doors so they could work on meeting our needs. Meals were served to Fire, Police, Parks, and PG&E personnel involved in the evacuations. After dinner, the evacuations were completed and the parks were handed over to the PD to provide security.
   
FSU-2 and a weary John and Don were released at 20:45 and sent home after a long, long day. FSU-3 was dispatched to provide additional meals at a third flooding location.
   
Report submitted by Bruce Dembecki

Fire Associates Called To Aide San Jose Food Response

 
Date: Feb. 21, 2017
Dispatch at 10:37am
Location: San Jose's Nordale neighborhood - Phelan & Senter Roads
Type: Multiple Flood Rescues
FASCV Responders: FSU-2, Gilbert, Whiteside
   
Details: San Jose Fire called Fire Associates looking for assistance with meals for an ongoing rescue operation in the Nordale neighborhood, near Kelley Park. The Coyote Creek had flooded and was flooding multiple homes and apartments. San Jose responded with multiple rescue boats and were working to evacuate residents.
   
The nature of the flood meant the floodwaters were contaminated wth raw sewage, fuel and oil from flooded vehicles, and assorted chemicals picked up in various homes and garages. This meant as well as evacuating the residents it was important to decontaminate the residents who had been exposed to the flood water.
   
San Jose worked to evacuate over 200 residents by boat. Meanwhile Fire Associates were setting up to provide rehab to the first responders working the scene. Setting up a rehab facility across the street from the incident in the lobby of the Fire HQ building proved advantageous, and our helpers throughout the day even included San Jose’s Fire Chief Jacobson.
 
Don Gilbert and John Whiteside responded to the scene with Fire Support Unit 2, stopping en route to collect the first 40 meals, along with a supply of donuts and coffee. Setting up Rehab in a downstairs conference room gave our first responders a higher than normal comfort level, and good access to bathroom facilities. Of course having been wading through chest deep water across the road they all had to decontaminate before entering Rehab.
   
As the event dragged into the afternoon a second food run was made to bring in another 40 meals for hungry first responders. Once the primary search had been completed of all the residences in the impacted neighborhood units were released to additional flood areas around San Jose. With FSU-2 being dispatched to an ongoing operation on Oakland Road at around 16:15.
 
Report submitted by Bruce Dembecki

Los Gatos Condo Fire Goes to 2 Alarms

   
Date: Feb 5, 2017
Requesting Agency: County Fire (CNT).
Incident Location: Los Gatos, Unit 120k, at dead-end of College Terrace Court at College Ave. Near Main Street/Hwy 17, southwest of downtown, uphill above Hwy 17.
Type: 2-alarm; plus SJS for 2 engines, station coverage.
   
Details: Continuous rain, downhill walk into the scene at a Multi-unit condo structure fire with narrow street access. Fire unit at ground level, only feet from parked engines. Hydrant within complex. Per IC, we only provided water, Gatorade and CLIF bars. Fire in attic, thought to have originated from fireplace. Contained to single, end unit.
 
FASCV Response: FSU-2, John Whiteside (driver), Mike Garcia, Walter Huber, and guest Christian Sevilla. Departed SJS Station 6 at 19:20, released 20:40.
   
Report submitted by John Whiteside

2-alarm House Fire In Palo Alto

 
Date: Dec. 30, 2016
Agency: Palo Alto Fire
Incident Address: 2126 Louis Ave
Type: 2-alarm House fire 


Details:
Single-story, older Eichler-style home. Fully involved upon arrival. Initially unable to confirm if all occupants were out, only one occupant made it out with no injuries. Heavy B side exposure with two cars involved in the attached carport. 2nd alarm called and firefighters initiated a new “nozzle forward” mode of attack. 4 pots of coffee, snacks were served.
 
Agency Responders: 
PAF
MTV
CNT
MOF

FASCV Arrived: 0530 Released: 0800
FASCV Responding Unit: FSU-1
FASCV Responders:
Mike Garcia (driver), Walter Huber, Larry Carr
 
Reported by Walter Huber

FASCV Provides Support At Sunnyvale Apartment Blaze

   
Date: Nov. 17, 2016
Agency: Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety
Incident Address: 516 N Mathilda Ave.
Arrived: 0010; Released 0200
Type: 2nd Alarm
   
Details:
Small 2-Story complex with fully involved first/floor apartment unit.
   
Agency Responders: Sunnyvale
   
FASCV Responding Unit: FSU-1

FASCV Responders: Larry Carr, Mike Garcia, and Walter Huber (driver)
 
-- Report submitted by Walter Huber

FASCV Provides Rehab Support at Gas Leak

   
On Friday, Nov. 14, at approximately noon in the area of Park and Sunol in San Jose FASCV received a Special Call for a major natural gas problem.
   
FSU 1 driven by Walter Huber and FSU 2 Driven by Don Gilbert responded. FASCV provided meal pickup and rehab for about 5.5 hours.
   
A contractor's backhoe ruptured a 6” high-pressure natural gas line while at the same time the backhoe also ruptured a sewer line. This caused the underground sewer line system to become charged with natural gas over a large geographical area.  This required the evacuation and sealing off of a large area covering several city blocks.
   
Once the natural gas was shutdown, it took a period of time to purge the gas from the sewer system and allow for a size reduction of the evacuation zone. When PG&E started to make repairs to the 6” pipe, a 4” gas pipe was located that had to be neutralized before the 6” repairs could be started.
  
-- Report submitted by Don Gilbert through Bob Gundrum

FASCV Members Respond to 3-Alarm House Fire

 
San Jose Fire responded to a 3rd alarm blaze at 3253 Ensalmo Avenue, cross of Hillsdale Avenue. FSU-3 responded for Fire Associates with Don Gilbert, John Whiteside, Teri Costentino, and Walter Huber providing support.

The blaze gutted a single-family house with some damage to houses on both sides.
    
-- Report submitted by Bob Gundrum

Fire Associates Supports Fire Academy

 
Date: Oct. 12, 2016
Agency: Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety 
Incident Address: 795 E Arques Ave.
Arrived: 0830; Released 1500
Type: Special Call
   
Details:
FSU-1 provided support for JFA 16-2 Fire Academy

Agency Responders: Sunnyvale, Palo Alto, Boulder Creek, Scotts Valley

FASCV Responding Unit: FSU-1

FASCV Responders: Mike Garcia, Bob Gundrum, Walter Huber (driver), and Dan Wong
   
-- Report submitted by Walter Huber

Campbell RV Fire Goes to Two Alarms

    

On October 8, Santa Clara County Fire answered a 2nd alarm at ‪202 W. Rincon Ave‬, cross of Salice Way, in Campbell.

   

FSU-3 with Don Gilbert and John Whiteside, were cancelled by radio upon departure from SJS Station 6. The call was for a ully involved RV in the yard of a house.

   

-- Report submitted by Bob Gundrum

Late September House Fire Taxes Crews in the South County

 

Friday, September 30 at 4:54 A.M., Morgan Hill CalFire received reports of a house fire in the hills west of town. This was located in the South Santa Clara Fire District, at 2880 Tohara Way. This is in the area off of Sycamore Drive, west of Watsonville Highway. 

   

The woodlands are tinder dry, and the fire danger is HIGH! Consequently a high initial dispatch of 18 engines, 9 being wildland engines, 4 water tenders, 2 hand crews and 4 Chiefs was made. Fire units from San Jose, Gilroy and Morgan Hill City were also part of the dispatch.

      

The single-story house was located near the deadend of Tohara Way, with no nearby hydrants. Water was trucked in to the scene. At 6:17 A.M. Fire Associates was paged to respond with a Fire Support Unit and John Whiteside took FSU-3 about 30 miles to the scene. Benches, donuts, hot coffee, water, Gatorade, and Clif Bars were provided the remaining crews. John was released around 9:00 A.M. The house was gutted.

     

Several of the responding wildland rigs from other CalFire units were covering vacant stations around Morgan Hill. A 4,300+ acre vegetation fire has been burning since September 26 in steep inaccessible terrain about 10 miles northwest of this house. A large base camp had been set up in nearby Gilroy, about 10 miles south, and some 2,000 personnel are involved. The morning of this fire, there were 179 engines, 34 water tenders, 32 dozers, 61 hand crews, and 22 helicopters and air tankers assigned to the “Loma” vegetation fire.

   

— Report submitted by John Whiteside