September 24, 2009 -- A Busy, 2-Response Day for Fire Associates

Shortly after Fire Associates Board members had adjourned their afternoon meeting at Station 26 in San Jose, our pagers became very active.

1) First to call for our service was Palo Alto Fire. FASCV was paged at 2:57 P.M. to 420 Emerson Street in that city for a 2-alarm fire in a restaurant. Bob Gundrum and Jerry Haag responded with Support Unit 1. They were on the road returning from the Board meeting when the call arrived. Jerry Haag has submitted this report:

Date: 24 Sept. 2009
Time: 1457 Sonitrol dispatch, 1600 arrival, released at 1730.
Type: Structure fire
Size: Second alarm
Jurisdiction: City of Palo Alto
Location: 420 Emerson St.

Details: Single-story, fancy French restaurant (Evvia Estiatorio). Fire, apparently associated with cooking equipment, spread into ceiling space. Good stop. Restaurant can be returned to operation fairly soon. Overhaul was fairly minimal, so our services were not required for very long. Second-alarm units were quickly released.

Units in attendance:
PAF: E-1,2,3, T-6 (Joint PA/MV Quint); BS-2; Medic-1; Batt. 6
MTV: E-3, T-1
CNT: Batt. 14

Responding Members: Gundrum (driver), Haag
Fire Support Unit Responding: FSU-1

Remarks: Gundrum and Haag responded from SJS Station 26. No other members from NW County were available.

• A San Jose Mercury-News story can be read at this link: Fire Singes Restaurant

** Above photo by Will Oremus/Daily News


2) Then, at 6:18 PM, San Jose Fire issued a request for Fire Associates. This time, a house was on fire at 1370 Mocho Court -- near the intersection of Tully Rd. and McLaughlin Ave. John Whitaker responded in Support Unit 2 and he was met by FASCV member George Hoyt. This being a 3-alarm fire in a residential neighborhood, space was at a premium. Upon arrival, John found streets full of fire equipment and a maze of hoses leading from several hydrants to the blaze.

The closest the Support Unit could get to the scene was 2 blocks away. Med 30 directed that their only need was for cold water, as his supply was running low. Later in the evening, George made a meal-run (burritos) at the direction of the IC. Meals were provided for the two engine companies and one truck that were staying to do the extensive overhaul.

The support unit was released shortly after 10:00 P.M. and was back in quarters at 10:30 P.M.

• A San Jose Mercury-News story can be read at: Fire Fighters Contain Blaze
  
  
• John's photos can be viewed at: SJS - Mocho Ct. Fire

September 18, 2009 -- Multi-Alarm Response for Santa Clara City Fire

On Friday morning, Sept. 18, the Fire Associates' pagers came to life at 2:46 A.M. with word of a multi-alarm fire in the City of Santa Clara. Located at 800 Scott Blvd., the fire was at the Citti's Florist building. Jerry Haag answered the call, taking Support Unit 1 to the incident. Jerry was joined on scene by FASCV member, Ron Green. Jerry has submitted the following report:

Date: 19 Sept. 2009
Time: 0245 Gundrum dispatch, 0330 arrival, released at 0445.
Type: Structure fire
Size: Second alarm
Jurisdiction: City of Santa Clara
Location: 800 Scott Blvd.

Details: Single story, small, free standing commercial building (Citti's Florist). Fire started in or adjacent to a delivery van parked in near proximity to the building. Fire spread into the overhanging fascia and was largely confined there due to quick effective action by first arriving engine and truck. Overhaul was minimal so our services were not required for very long. Second alarm and mutual aid (SJS) units were quickly released.

Units in attendance (first alarm units only listed):
SNC: E-3,9; T-2; R-2; HM-9; M-1; Batt. 1 (Titus)
Responding Members: Haag (driver), Green
Fire Support Unit Responding: FS-1

Remarks: Gundrum had to handle paging since Sonitrol computers were temporarily down.

Addition information can be viewed at the following link:

• San Jose Mercury-News story
  
  
• Likely Cause Announced - SJ Merc-News
  

* Photo used courtesy of Craig Allyn Rose

San Jose Fire Dept. Hosts Area-wide 9/11 Event

On Friday, September 11, the San Jose Fire Department hosted an area-wide memorial ceremony honoring the victims and heroes of the 9/11 World Trade Center tragedy. Held at Fire Station No. 1, the event was emceed by Batt. 1A Chief, Kevin Conant and featured speeches by San Jose City Mayor, Chuck Reed, and Fire Chief, Darryl Von Raesfeld. The scene was framed by an American flag hung from the ladders of San Jose's two new tillered aerial trucks, and flanked by an antique fire engine from the San Jose Fire Museum. The nation's colors were presented by San Jose Fire Dept. Honor Guard and music was supplied the San Jose Fire Dept. Chorus. At the conclusion of the event, a wreath with the words "911 - Never Forget" was placed at the memorial bell by the City's mayor and fire chief.

John Whitaker's photos of the event can be viewed at this link: San Jose's 9/11 Memorial

Ten FASCV Responses in 12 Days

Ten responses in twelve days!!! Yep, that's what we said. After a below-average number of calls over the past several months, the dam burst during the first half of September.

It all began on the afternoon of September 2nd with a Tier 3 grass fire on San Jose's Communications Hill. We'll describe that response and then list the rest from there...

1. Sept. 2, 2009: SJS - Communications Hill Tier 3 Grass Fire
   
   Fire Associates was paged at 3:00 P.M. to 2700 Carol Drive for a grass fire that was quickly spreading up the West side of Communications Hill. John Whitaker (and his guest, Bruce Dembecki) responded in Fire Support Unit 2. Already on scene were Mike Chappell and George Hoyt. FASACV members Don Gilbert and Ron Green also assisted later in the event. The Support Unit was first set up at a command post on the south side of the fire, at the intersection of Helzer Rd. and McIntyre Dr. However, after being set up there a while, it became obvious that the fire crews were too spread out for the Support Unit to be effective. We later moved operations to the main command center on Carol Dr. and were able to distribute meals and drinks to fire crews as they came down off the hill.
   
   Additional information can be found at these links:
   
   
   • San Jose Mecury-News Story
   • John Whitaker's Photos
   • Bruce Dembecki's Photos
   
   
2. Sept. 3, 2009: SJS - Arson/Homicide Investigation Support
   
   At 10:46 A.M. on Wednesday, Sept. 3, Fire Associates was paged by special request to 14160 Woodhaven Drive. Earlier in the morning, San Jose Fire units responded to a fully-involved house fire. The incident resulted in a resident fatality and it was determined that the structure might be a crime scene. On a very hot afternoon, Don Gilbert responded in Support Unit 2. He was joined by George Hoyt and John Whitaker. Shade was provided along with some very cold drinks and much-appreciated meals. FASCV was released at approximately 5:00 P.M. -- in time to take the Support Unit up to Mountain View for our Sept. Monthly Meeting.
   
   Additional information can be found at these links:
   
   
   • San Jose Mercury-News Story
   • John's Photos
   
   
3. Sept. 4, 2009: SJS - "Modified 2nd-Alarm" House Fire
   
   Although not technically a multi-alarm event, Fire Associates was paged by special request to provide assistance at a house fire near the intersection of Story and MacLaughlin Roads. Don Gilbert responded in Support Unit 2 to the 10:45 A.M. call. He was met on scene at 1045 Owsley Ave. by FASCV members John Whitaker and Ron Green. On another very warm summer afternoon, cold liquids were in demand! Meals from Togo's Sandwiches were also served to some tired fire crews at a thankfully shady rehab location.
   
   
   • John Whitaker's Photos
     
   
   
4. Sept. 5, 2009: SJS - Quicksilver County Park Vegetation Fire
   
   Response number 4 was for a Tier 3 vegetation fire in Almaden Quicksilver County Park. Don Gilbert responded to the 4:36 P.M. page in Support Unit 2. He was joined on scene by Jerry Haag, George Hoyt and Dan Ross. Fred Oehm was also on hand in the staging area at Castillero Middle School, 6384 Leyland Park Drive. After reporting to the staging area and providing refreshments and relief to those crews, our new Support Unit's 4-wheel drive capabilities were called upon to deliver meals "up on the hill". Reports were that Don Gilbert was grinning from ear-to-ear as he drove along the trails that lead up from the Mockingbird Hill entrance to the park. Fire crews from Cal Fire, Santa Clara County Fire and San Jose had the 11-acre fire under control by 7:00 P.M.
   
   Additional information can be found at these links:
   
   
   • San Jose Mercury-News Story
   • Craig Allyn Rose's Photos
     
   
   
5. Sept. 7, 2009: CNT - Los Altos Area Grass Fire
   
   Monday, September 7, brought the next in our series of fires. This time, we were paged by Santa Clara County Fire to 5872 Arboretum Drive in Los Altos, near Woods Lane, for a 2nd-alarm grass fire. Larry Carr was quick to answer the 6:04 P.M. call in Support Unit 4. He was met on scene by Jerry Haag and Ron Green.
   
   
6. Sept. 9, 2009: SJS - McKee Road House Fire
   
   Two days later, on Wednesday, it was back to San Jose for a house fire at 3801 McKee Road on the City's east side. With many of FASCV's "South County" responders unavailable on this day, Jerry Haag answered the late-morning page with a rare sojourne into San Jose with Support Unit 1 and submitted the following:
   
   Date: 09 Sept. 2009
   Time: 1128 Sonitrol dispatch, 1230 arrival, released at 1345.
   Type: Structure fire
   Size: Augmented First alarm
   Jurisdiction: San Jose
   Location: 3801 McKee Road
   
   Details: Single-story, single-family, vacant, frame with stucco dwelling. Fire started on interior and spread to attic space. Engine 2, first-in, made attack with two 1-3/4" preconnects assisted by Truck 2 and Engine 19. Because of reported HazMat of unknown nature, County HazMat was requested since San Jose HazMat was otherwise engaged.
   
   Units in attendance:
   SJS: E-2 & 19, T-2, LU-2, BP-2, Batt. 21 (Alvarado)
   CNT: E-2, BS-2, HM-2
   Responding Members: Haag (driver)
   Fire Support Unit Responding: FSU-1
   
   Remarks: Long run but fun to see SJFD in action. FSU-1 ran like a champ.
   
   
7. Sept. 10, 2009: MLP - 3rd Alarm for Multiple-Dwelling Inferno
   
   The very next day, it was Milpitas Fire's turn with a 3-alarmer. First-in Milpitas units arrrived to see the home a 679 N. Abel St. almost fully involved with a second structure beginning to burn. Wires were already down across a perimeter chain-link fence and the natural gas meter was burning. Fire crews had their hands full with a very smokey fire! A page for FASCV assistance came in at 2:44 P.M. and Bob Gundrum responded in Support Unit 1. He was met on scene by Jerry Haag, John Whitaker and Ron Green. Jerry Haag has submitted the following incident report:
   
   Date: 10 Sept. 2009
   Time: 1444 Sonitrol dispatch, 1530 arrival, released at 1830.
   Type: Structure fire
   Size: Second alarm
   Jurisdiction: Milpitas
   Location: 679 N. Abel Street
   
   Details: Single-story, duplex dwelling. Similar structure on the B-side was also involved. Heavy damage to both structures. 24 persons displaced. Three of four handlines were supplied by T-4. T-1 supplied two elevated master streams.
   
   Units in attendance:
   MLP: E-1,2,3; T-1,4; USAR-1; Batt. 19 (Mihovich); 19-A-5 (Brown)
   Fremont: E-55, T-57, Batt. 5
   SJS: E-19, T-29, LU-29, Batt. 29
   SNC: R-2
   
   Responding Members: Gundrum (driver), Whitaker, Green, Haag
   Fire Support Unit Responding: FS-1
   
   Remarks: Meals were served (44 Subway sandwiches).
   
   Additional information can be found at these links:
   
   
   • San Jose Mercury-News Story
   • John Whitaker's Photos
     
   
   
8. Sept. 12, 2009: SCN Request for a 2nd-Alarm Industrial Fire
   
   Well, with all the fire activity, it was bound to happen -- two requests on the same day in the same city! The first page came in from Santa Clara City Fire at 6:28 P.M. on Saturday, September 12 for a fire burning at ECS Refining. Jerry Haag brought Support Unit 1 and was joined by Bob Gundrum, Ron Grene, Ed Del Prete, and Rick James. Jerry has issued this report:
   
   Date: 12 Sept. 2009
   Time: 1828 Sonitrol dispatch, 1900 arrival, released at 2216.
   Type: Structure fire
   Size: Second alarm
   Jurisdiction: City of Santa Clara
   Location: 705 Reed St.
   
   Details: Single-story, industrial building (plastics recycler). Fire in piles of shredded plastic, no structural involvement. All hand lines supplied by E-1, single 5" supply line. Smoldering piles had to be removed from the building using a front-loader operated by a firefighter wearing SCBA. Initial alarm at about 1430, second alarm followed shortly thereafter. FASCV not called for another four hours.
   
   Units in attendance:
   SNC: E-1,3,6,9; T-2,8; R-2; M-1; Batt. 1 (Phillips)
   
   Responding Members: Haag (driver), Gundrum, Green, Del Prete, James
   Fire Support Unit Responding: FS-1
   
   Remarks: Meals were served.
   
   
9. Sept. 12, 2009: SCN Request at 2nd-Alarm Apartment Fire
   
   At 10:15 P.M., Santa Clara City Fire made another request for FASCV. This time, Bob Gundrum provided the support at the El Paradero Apartments, located at 2050 Royal Drive. He was joined by FASCV members Jerry Haag and Ron Green. Bob has provided the following:
   
   Date: 12 Sept. 2009
   Time: 2216 Sonitrol dispatch, 2220 arrival, released at 2330
   Type: Structure fire
   Size: Second alarm
   Jurisdiction: City of Santa Clara
   Location: 2050 Royal Dr.
   
   Details: Two-story, apartment building, smoke from attic, 2nd alarm
   upon arrival (more of a precaution, due to attic involvement). Seat of
   fire quickly located and extinguished. FASCV had just been released
   from the Reed St. call and self-dispatched to this event.
   
   Units in attendance:
   SNC: E-3, 5, 6, & 9; HM-9; T-8; R-2; M-1; Batt. Chief Della Maggiore
   Responding Members: Gundrum (relief-driver), Haag, Green
   Fire Support Unit Responding: FSU-1
   
   
10. Sept. 14, 2009: SJS - 3rd-Alarm at 15,000-sq.-ft. Retail Structure
    
    FASCV's 10th request of the month was from the San Jose Fire Dept. Goodwill's large, donation and retail center was burning at 3020 Alum Rock Ave. Don Gilbert answered the 3:51 A.M. page and brought Support Unit 2 to the scene. He was met by FASCV members John Whitaker and Ron Green -- who were later joined by Pete Rowe who "...just happened to be coming to the (neighboring) Orchard Supply Store and saw all the activity", to quote Pete.
    
    Goodwill had just opened the outlet in July to serve the City's east side residents. Before that, the building had been the home of Reed's Sporting Goods, since 1972. The first-in engine companies found the structure totally involved and the fire-fight quickly became a "surround and drown" event. Support Unit 2 served the usual early morning fare (coffee and doughnuts) to over 60 tired and wet firefighters. As the sun began to rise, FASCV also arranged for, and served, "breakfast" from a nearby fast-food restaurant. FASCV was released by the IC at approximately 11:30 A.M.
    
    Additional information can be found at these links:
    
    
    • San Jose Mercury-News Story
    • John Whitaker's Photos
      
      

August 30, 2009 -- Special Call Support for Sunnyvale Fire

Sunday evening, at approximately 6:30 P.M., Bob Gundrum responded in Support Unit 1 to a fire in Sunnyvale. Located in the Willowbend Apartments & Townhomes at 1035 Aster Ave., the fire was burning in a multi-family apartment building. Responding with Bob were FASCV members Jerry Haag and Ron Green. Jerry has issued the following report:

Date: 30 August 2009
Time: 1829 Sonitrol dispatch, 1845 arrival, released at 2000.
Type: Structure Fire
Size: Special Call on Augmented First Alarm
Jurisdiction: Sunnyvale
Location: 1035 Aster Ave., Sunnyvale

Details: Two-story, multi-family apartment building with fire in the walls and ceiling space. Moderate damage -- two apartments affected. E-2 took a hydrant on a 5" supply line in the front of the building, stretched a 3" to a gated wye, one 1-1/2" taken from the wye, another in standby. Also a 1-3/4" preconnect was put in service.

Units in attendance:
SNY: E-2, T-2, R-2, E-4, E-6, E-30, Batt. 3
Responding Members: Gundrum (driver), Haag, Green
Fire Support Unit Responding: FS-1

Remarks: Lots of wall and ceilings had to be opened to get at a small amount of fire. Submitted by: J. Haag

FASCV Support at Corvette Rally

On Saturday, August 29, Fire Associates provided coffee support at the 2009 National Corvette Caravan kick-off event. Club Auto Sport, 521 Charcotte Ave., was the site of this event for Corvette enthusiasts. The 15th-annual rally will take the participants across the country on a 5-day journey to Bowling Green, Kentucky, the location of the National Corvette Museum.

FASCV got involved when San Jose Fire Museum asked us to help out with their pancake breakfast fund raiser. Because of earlier success at putting on open house events at a display of antique fire equipment, Club Auto Sport offered the event as an opportunity for the Museum and Fire Associates to raise funds. Although the turnout was not as high as had been hoped (the poor economy is suspected as the cause), our group and the Fire Museum were successful in getting good publicity and proving, once again, that we could host events of this type.

Thanks to FASCV members John Whitaker, Bob Gundrum and Ron Green for their early-morning help.

Photos of the event can be seen at: 2009 Corvette Caravan Kick-off

John's low-res video of the rally beginning can be seen at: 2009 Corvette Caravan

August 27, 2009 -- Level 3 Hi-rise Response at SJSU

On Thursday morning, Aug. 27, at 9:02 A.M., Fire Associates was paged for a Level 2 hi-rise fire at the Campus Village dormatories (Bldg. B) at San Jose State University. Located at 355 S. 10th Street, a vintage VW van was burning in the underground garage. Arriving in Support Unit 2 was Don Gilbert who was met on scene by Mike Chappell and John Whitaker.

Building B is a 15-story structure with an underground, 2-level parking garage. It is described on the campus website as: "...the location of the upper division apartments, the Recreation Activities Center (RAC), and the Village Market. It is the centerpiece of the Campus Village and features a 15-story tower. It has one bedroom studios, and 3, 4, 5 bedroom apartments equipped with a kitchen, and living room area."

Initially called a Level 2 incident, it was briefly upgraded to a Level 3 fire by the IC before that call for equipment was canceled. At first, initial responders could not tell what type of fire they were dealing with or how extensive an area was on fire. First-in companies went down to the garage area and were met by heavy, dense black smoke requiring them to make the initial exploration with "tag lines". Once the source of the smoke was determined, fire crews could then decide how to extinguish the inferno.

Support Unit 2 was instructed to set up on the 10th Street side of the building. However, after being set up for awhile at that location, Rehab was eventually relocated in a courtyard area at the rear of the structure. Rehab was demobed at approximately 11:30 A.M.

John's photos can be viewed at: SJS - SJSU Hi-rise Fire

A good news story on the incident can be read at: SJ Merc-News

August 10, 2009 -- Special Call from Santa Clara City Fire

At 3:48 PM on Monday, August 10, Santa Clara Fire put out a call for Fire Associates help. This time, it was not for a fire or a Hazmat situation -- One of Great America's roller coaster rides was stuck and it was going to take hours of effort to get everyone to the ground safely.

Jerry Haag responded in Support Unit 1 and was joined at the amusement park by FASCV members Bob Gundrum and George Hoyt. Jerry has submitted the following report:

Date: 10 August 2009
Time: 1548 Sonitrol dispatch, 1630 arrival, released at 1830.
Type: High-Angle Rescue
Size: Special Call
Jurisdiction: Santa Clara City
Location: 2401 Agnew Road

Details: Rescue from elevated location of 24 patrons of Great America Park, 40 to 80 feet in the air. Two aerial platforms (CNT T-1 and SJS T-29) and one aerial (SNC T-8) were used. Riders were released and brought to the ground individually after having been stranded since 1315. Last one down about 1715.

Units in attendance:
SNC: T-8, E-10, E-6, R-2, T-2, Batt. 1
CNT: R-3, T-1, USAR-5, E-2, BS-2, E-305, T-5, Batt. 2
SJS: T-29, E-5, USAR-5, Tech. Rescue, B-29
Responding Members: Haag (driver), Gundrum, Hoyt
Fire Support Unit Responding: FS-1

Remarks: A difficult situation expertly handled by personnel in attendance. No riders were injured.

A SJ Mercury-News story can be read at: Riders Rescued

Bob Gundrum's photos are at this link: SNC - Great America Rescue

July 28, 2009 -- 2nd-Alarm Response into Los Gatos

It was 1:37 PM on Tuesday, July 28, when Fire Associates was paged by Santa Clara County Fire to a second-alarm inferno. This time (it was our second call in 24 hours) the fire was in Los Gatos and involved one of the city's classic old homes. Located at 15945 Camino del Cerro, on the corner of Blossom Hill Rd., the 2-story home suffered severe damage to the attic and second floor.

Responding to the scene in Support Unit 2 was Don Gilbert who was joined by FASCV members George Hoyt and John Whitaker. Support Unit 2 was quickly on the scene as Don was already in the rig returning a tool to the County Fire Maintenance Shop. Rehab was set up on a side-street just north of the fire to take advantage of some shade on an 80-degree summer afternoon. Lemonade and cold drinks were so in demand that a seperate trip to the store to get more ice was needed.

Built in 1892, knocked off its foundation in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, and restored in 1992, this building is on the city's historic landmarks list. With the owner standing by watching, firefighters quickly kept the damage to a minimum under difficult circumstances. The building's steep roof and wrap-around porch, made access to the fire tricky. Also, because of the steepness of the street, it was not possible to safely position a ladder truck for aerial access to the roof.

A very interesting video of the event can be seen at: Fire at Historic Home

John's photos of the event can bee seen at: CNT - Los Gatos House Fire

Los Gatos Observer news story can be read at: 2nd-Alarm Fire in Los Gatos

July 27, 2009 -- Early-morning, 2-Alarm Fire in Saratoga

At 4:18 AM on Monday, July 27, Fire Associates was requested by Santa Clara County Fire. A structure fire was burning at 13179 Shadow Mountain Drive in Saratoga. Responding in Support Unit 1 was FASCV member, Jerry Haag. Jerry was met on scene by John Whitaker. Jerry has submitted the following account of the incident:

Date: 27 July 2009
Time: 0418 Sonitrol dispatch; 0515 arrival; released at 0700.
Type: Structure fire
Size: Second alarm
Jurisdiction: County Fire (Saratoga's Area)
Location: 13179 Shadow Mountain Dr., Saratoga

Details: Ranch style, single-story, single-family dwelling. Fire most-likely started in a bedroom then spread to attic space. CNT Engine 17 first in, deployed several 1-3/4 and 1-1/2" lines, provided own 5" water supply line from hydrant across the street. Roof was tough to open due to metal, simulated-tile roof covering - but good stop was made. House is repairable. Three adults were displaced.

Units in attendance:
CNT: E-8, E-9, E-17, T-1, T-5, R-17, P-1, P-5, BS-2, HM-2, Batt. 2, Batt. 14
Responding Members: Jerry Haag (driver), John Whitaker Fire Support Unit Responding: FSU-1
Remarks: Donut-run made by Whitaker.

John's photos from the event can be viewed at: CNT - Saratoga House Fire

SJ Merc-News story can be read at: 2-Alarm Fire Controlled