The Springfield Tire Fire always burns in the hometown of "The Simpsons" television series. In 1917, a coal fire smoldered for weeks in Springfield, Ohio.
Fire Chief — Samuel F. Hunter.
Superintendent of Telegraph — Michael M. Duffy.
Central Steam Fire Company No. 1 — West side of South Fountain Avenue, between Jefferson and Washing ton; H. M. Rankin, captain.
Engine Company No. 2 — East side of North Factory Street, between Columbia and North; C. M. Moffett, captain.
Engine Company No. 4 — Lagonda Avenue, between C, C, C. & St. L. Railroad and Florence; J. Edward Bryant, captain.
Engine Company No. 6 — Southeast corner Mound and Glenn Avenue; E. J. Perkins, captain.
Chemical Engine Company — West side of South Yellow Springs, between Pleasant and Dibert Avenue; William Fanning, captain.
Hook and Ladder Company No. 1 — West side of South Fountain Avenue, between Jefferson and Washington.
Hook and Ladder Company No. 3 — Northwest corner Clifton and Boler; H. T. Evans, captain.
Southern Steam Fire Company No. 3 — Northwest corner Clifton and Boler ; H. T. Evans, captain.
Hose Company No. 4 — East side Lagonda Avenue, between C, C, C. & St. L. Railroad and Florence.
Hose Company No. 5 — South side Main, near Park ; L. L. Metcalf , captain.
Hose Company No. 6 — Southeast corner Mound and Glenn; E. J. Perkins, captain.
Hose Company No. 7 — South side Cecil, between Fountain Avenue and Limestone; Pat H. Lawler, captain.
Hose Company No. 8 — West side South Yellow Springs, between Pleasant and Dibert Avenue; William Fanning, captain.
SOURCE: 20th Century History of Springfield , and Clark County, Ohio and Representative Citizens. Edited and compiled by Hon. William M. Rockel, Springfield, Ohio - 1908.
On May 1, 1920, Springfield switched to a two-platoon system from continuous duty, placing firefighters "on duty twenty-four hours and off the same length of time — subject to emergency calls at all times," according to a 1922 history of the city by Benjamin Prince.
On Oct. 25, 2007, fire swept an apartment building at 6631 Rita Drive in Enon, Ohio. According to WHIO-TV, a neighbor fetched a ladder to rescue three people. Enon is near Springfield.
On Dec. 28, 1900, fire destroyed Hamma Divinity Hall, a seminary, and low water pressure delayed the firefighters' assault on the flames.
Springfield firefighters saved Myers Hall at Wittenberg University from a prank gone awry more than a century ago, according to the Spring 2001 edition of Wittenberg Magazine.
On Dec. 12, 1906, flames broke out at St. Bernard Church on Lagonda Avenue. The fire "for a time threatened the entire structure, but fortunately it was confined to the organ," according to a 1935 history of the parish. "It was much disputed what caused the fire, but it was thought that a candle was left lighted in repairing the organ. The organ was immediately replaced by a larger one."
Photos: Springfield Fire Rescue Division
Photo: Springfield News-Sun
On Sept. 4, 2009, a motorist helped a woman trapped by a house fire at 1428 Clifton Avenue, according to the Springfield News-Sun. "Jonna Buckner was in the upstairs apartment when the fire started and escaped to the porch roof," the newspaper said. "A passerby in a truck stopped, took the ladder off his truck and helped her get down." He left before she could thank him.
On May 6, 1895, The New York Times published a brief dispatch from Springfield entitled "AN OHIO TOWN ON FIRE; New-Carlisle Threatened with Destruction -- Opera House and Other Buildings Burning." New Carlisle requested assistance from Springfield's fire department after the fire broke out May 5, the dispatch said. William Francis Stockstill, 1850-1922, built the theater and moved to Dayton when it "aburned to the ground," according to a family history posted on the web.
On Jan. 8, 1968, a freight train derailed in Snyderville - six miles west of Springfield - and set a family's home ablaze, according to the Associated Press.
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio (UPI) - Firemen say four children playing with matches behind the Lynn Hockenson Co. here accidentally touched off a three alarm fire that swept through the cardboard box producing plant, causing an estimated $40,000 damage.
In 1973, Barney the beagle puppy got his head stuck in a milk can and members of the Springfield Fire Division freed him - proving man can be a dog's best friend.
Click on links for photos:
On May 2, 1990, a three-year-old boy named Tyler Wolf dialed 911 after his mother fell unconscious in their home at 817 East McCreight Avenue in Springfield, Ohio.
On Jan. 4, 1954, a general alarm fire swept the 99-year-old Western Grade School at West Main and Yellow Spring streets.Eight teachers and 275 pupils were safely evacuated by the time firefighters arrived, demonstrating the value of regular fire drills.
The Springfield Daily News reported that when the alarm sounded teachers ``did not know it was a real fire'' and ``headed their charges out of the building before they realized the building was aflame.''
Coincidentally, an earlier school by the same name was destroyed by fire in February 1858.
Four years later, a fire at the Our Lady of Angels School in Chicago claimed about 100 lives, leading to sweeping changes in school fire safety across the U.S.
Photo: Ohio Air National Guard
Photo: New Carlisle Sun
CLICK ON LINK TO VIEW PHOTOS:
"In the days of Fire Chief Simpson the Simpson Lumber Company horses were used in emergencies saving the city the expense of so many horses. Mr Simpson operated a lumber yard in a central location and one year when there was epizootic among the horses an ox team was used by the fire department the hose cart was too heavy for man power." - Excerpt from Benjamin F. Prince history book, 1922
Photo: Springfield News-Sun
Photos: Wikipedia
On Oct. 29, 1966, the Springfield Fire Division emergency squad responded with police to 415 Ludlow Avenue for a brutal attack on a mother and her baby. Anita Taylor, 20, died. The child survived.The Taylor murder remains unsolved and the family launched a web site seeking clues. The address is http://www.taylorcase.com/
The official police report said: "The Fire Div. Emergency Squad, consisting of Lt. Olds and Fireman Shook, arrived at the scene and transported the complainant and baby to Community Hospital, where the complainant was pronouned D.O.A. by Dr. Fifer."
Photos: Aven Fire Systems and Police Guide
From the 1880s to the 1970s, Springfield was protected by a Gamewell Fire Alarm Telegraph System. Alarm boxes were located at street corners. When a box was pulled, a spring-loaded wheel transmitted its number and the bells at the city's fire stations clanged out the location. Firefighters also used Gamewell boxes to request assistance - second alarm, third alarm, etc. - and transmit ``out tap'' signals declaring a fire under control. On Sept. 23, 1915, Superintendent of Fire Alarm Lawrence Bosley, 45, was fatally injured in fall from a telegraph pole on Main Street, just west of Burnett Road.
Photo: Dayton Daily News web siteOn Aug. 22, 2008, Springfield firefighters extinguished a fire in an apartment at 555 South Limestone Street and ``a passer-by helped a woman in a wheelchair escape the building,'' The Dayton Daily News reported on its web site.
On Feb. 20, 1958, a general alarm fire started by a welder's torch gutted the old Borden Dairy at 125 North Fountain Avenue.
``Two minutes after the blaze was reported, thick clouds of brownish yellow smoke poured from the building,'' The Springfield Daily News reported.
Fire Chief Willard Compton credited a dairy employee with preventing the flames from spreading. Carl Newberry closed a door between the storage department and the cheese department and contained the flames.
Milk cartons coated with paraffin fueled the flames, making for a smokey, slippery mess. After the fire, the pile of debris outside the dairy rose to the second floor.
Engine Co. 1 had just returned to the Central Engine House from a run to the Hume Hotel when the alarm was transmitted for the dairy, according to a 1978 history of the fire division, ``From Buckets to Diesels'' by Captain Calvin Roberds.
On March 10, 1953, a general alarm fire gutted the five-story Zimmerman Building at Limestone and Main streets in downtown Springfield - but a lone lightbulb inside the structure refused to go out.
The blaze burned for more than five hours. It started in the basement and traveled up a dumb waiter shaft to the top floor.
``Although the Ohio Edison Company cut all electric service to the building one light bulb continued to remain lit all through the fire and stayed lit until the upper three stories were removed,'' Fire Captain Calvin Roberds wrote in his 1978 history book From Buckets to Diesels. ``The source of the power was never found.''
Rex Miller, who worked at Pat Finnigan's tavern, pulled the alarm box at the interestion at 2:52 a.m., The Springfield Daily News reported. The second alarm followed at 2:58 a.m. and the general alarm at 3:17 a.m.
``I heard something like a shot being fired or an explosion in the basement,'' Miller told the newspaper. ``The next thing I knew was flames flaring from the basement.''
Hazel Patton, the lone occupant of the office building, fled on a fire escape. Springfield Fire Chief Willard Compton directed the fire fighting and ``practically all men and apparatus from the city department were pressed into service,'' the Daily News said.
Early on May 20, 1939, a general alarm fire swept the yard and buildings at the Clark County Lumber Co. and illuminated the night sky.
``All available equipment of the Springfield fire department was enlisted in the fruitless battle against the scorching flames,'' the Springfield Daily News reported. Train traffic on the New York Central Lines was halted.
Fire Captain Earl Hickman was treated at the yard - located at 1620-1734 West Main Street - for a hand injury and returned to his duties, Fire Chief Grover Frock said.
At the height of the catastrophe, flames leaped more than 100 feet into the sky and threatened adjacent homes and buildings.
Brands fell on a number of properties on the north side of the city and set a fire that destroyed a grain elevator at 1800-24 Main Street. Sparks also ignited a small fire at the Wilson Furniture Service at 1719 West Main Street as well as grass fires.
Utility poles and wires also burned.
According to news accounts, the lumber yard blaze started in Building B, which contained linoleum, insulating material, composition shingles and kitchen cabinets and spread to Building A, which contained the paint department. In all, five buildings were lost.
Photo: IAFF Local 333 web site
On May 5, 2005, the Springfield Fire-Rescue Division battled a pair of serious fires.
The first blaze swept an abandoned building on the northern edge of Snyder Park - apparently the former Bullock Garages, according to the Springfield News-Sun.
``It had a pretty good start on us before we got here,” Fire Chief Mike Beers told the newspaper, with firefighters stretching more than 1,000 feet of hose over railroad tracks and through woods to the nearest hydrant.
The second fire gutted a home at 2712 Berger Ave. Amber Griffith and her 4-year-old son escaped - and also saved their cat, according to the News-Sun.
On April 3, 1974, a tornado killed 33 people in Xenia in neighboring Greene County. The Springfield Fire Division and other emergency services in the Miami Valley sent assistance.
Fire conditions can change with lightning speed.
As crews battled a fire at The Peter A. Boggan Co. on Jan. 11, 1932, a floor collapsed ``endangering the lives of the firemen and the chief who were in the basement,'' The Springfield Daily News reported. They escaped without serious injury from the store, which was located at 34 East Main Street.
On Christmas morning 2004, Lt. Doug Buffenbarger of Rescue 1 plunged into the basement of a duplex at 805-807 Innisfallen Avenue after the first floor collapsed. Buffenbarger survived the fall, suffering only minor injuries, according to the Springfield News-Sun.
Several Springfield firefighters jumped for their lives as flames consumed the roof of the B&M Firebglass Co. at 350 South Fountain Avenue on Aug. 9, 1971. A series of explosions cut the firefighters off from their ladders, according to Springfield Fire Capt. Calvin Roberds' book ``From Buckets to Diesels.''
On Sept. 18, 2007, a flashover ripped through a vacant house as crews advanced hose lines inside the dwelling. Battalion Chief Marc Lloyd said none of the firefighters were injured in the incident in the 100-block of Shaffer Street, according to WHIO-TV.
Hazmat 1
Ammonia leak, South Charleston - 2006
Point and click on map for larger image:
Crowell-Collier General Alarm - 1999
Springfield, seat of Clark County, Ohio, is located between Dayton (to the west) and Columbus (to the east).
The Springfield Fire Rescue Division is a career fire department that protects the City of Springfield, Ohio, which is located along Interstate 70 and the old ``National Road'' in West Central Ohio. The city is the seat of Clark County.
The fire and rescue service - responsible for emergency medical care, firefighting, technical rescue and hazardous materials response - fields 10 companies operating from seven stations in three platoons (or shifts).
The shifts (A Unit, B Unit and C Unit) work ``24 hours on, 48 hours off.'' Each platoon is commanded by a battalion chief - a rank previously called "platoon commander" or "platoon chief."
Crews of the city's ``combination companies'' respond with either an engine or medic unit depending on the nature of the call - fire, medical, etc. The city also operates a rescue engine, three aerial ladders, a Hazmat unit and a technical rescue unit. An engine and medic unit are also held in reserve.
Typical on-duty staffing is three firefighters per vehicle - or about 30 firefighters, paramedics and officers - per shift. Combination companies are led by lieutenants. The rescue is also led by a lieutenant. Truck companies (the aerial ladders) are led by captains.
The fire rescue division is commanded by the Fire Chief, who is supported by two assistant chiefs and a headquarters staff of uniformed and civilian personnel.
The volunteers of the Box 27 Associates club assist the fire division at major fires and emergencies. The volunteers operate a light and air wagon and a mobile canteen.
Township fire departments protect the rest of Clark County and provide mutual aid to the city, and the Ohio Air National Guard operates a fire and rescue station at the municipal airport.
Finances
The story of the Springfield Fire Rescue Division is one of dedicated service and innovation against a backdrop of difficult municipal finances and chronic personnel shortages.
Station No. 2 closed during the Great Depression, and Station No. 9 closed in 1974 as the city's manufacturing base started to shrink.
In the early 1990s, three of the city's fire stations had only two firefighters assigned to each shift, and by mid-decade, the engine company at Station No. 1 was disbanded.
On average, the city's fire engines carried larger crews before the Great Depression of the 1930s, though at that time firefighters also worked longer hours.
The situation has since been reversed. A new policy of billing for ambulance services is providing more money for the recruitment of firefighters and paramedics.
Roberds Book
The fire division was the subject of the 1978 book ``From Buckets to Diesels'' by Springfield Fire Captain Calvin Roberds, who began his career as an auxiliary fireman during World War II. He retired in 1985, having attained the rank of platoon commander.
Roberds, who took great pride in his work as a fire service historian, died in 1995 at the age of 72.
The firefighters' union (IAFF Local 333) and Box 27 Associates helped raise funds for the publication of Roberds' book.
The Springfield Fire Journal is intended to serve as a 21st Century extension of Captain Roberds' comprehensive work. Besides adding new features to the Fire Journal, your editor regularly updates existing articles.
Suggestions are welcomed at wb2kqg@arrl.net
City Heritage
Springfield, established in 1799 by James Demint and migrant Kentuckians, evolved into a major industrial center in the 19th and 20th centuries.
In the 1800s, it led the U.S. in production of agricultural equipment. In the early 1900s, the city's factories produced a variety of autos, including the Bramwell, Brenning, Foos, Frayer-Miller, Kelly Steam, Russell-Springfield and Westcott, according to the Ohio Historical Society.
As the community evolved, fire protection evolved too - from bucket brigades, to volunteer companies and minute men, to a paid fire department to today's fire-rescue service.
Prevention vs Suppression
In the fire service, community safety is Priority No .1.
In his book, Roberds observed:
``Considering the primary mission of the fire service - fire prevention - the fire division has done its most effective work when the engines are in the engine houses. Yet the average citizen is apt to feel that engines not in use are not needed. Conversely, when the firefighters and engines are hard at work on a major fire, the first mission of the fire service has already been lost.''
Paramedics
Since the fire division fielded its first "Emergency Squad" in 1949, its role as first responder to medical emergencies has increased, with medical runs accounting for more than 80 percent of ALL the division's annual runs.
The formal name of the agency was changed to the Springfield Fire Rescue Division in the 1990s to reflect its wider role in the community.
In the annual report for 2004, Springfield Fire Chief Mike Beers reported that three decades after the establishment of the paramedic program - during the tenure of Fire Chief Frank Trempe - more than 80 percent of the city's firefighters are certified to provide advanced life support.
``Frank Trempe was my first fire chief, and he is oftentimes credited with having the vision to embrace the paramedic program that has led to our having the ability today to provide emergency medical services second to none,'' Beers wrote.
On Feb. 19, 1894, fire swept the downtown Arcade Hotel. Flames started in the basement ``Kindling Room,'' where coal and other fuels were stored - and ascended the elevator shaft. Fire Chief Ed Simpson ordered a general alarm to save the hotel.
``So quickly did the smoke cover the entire building that the women attaches of the hotel and in the dining room were compelled to escape from the windows and over the roof,'' The Springfield Weekly Republic reported Feb. 22.
The flames - discovered at 10:15 a.m. - ``spread from the east side to the west side of the hotel throughout all floors, and began eating their way through the hallways on the west side, where the guest chambers are,'' the Republic said.
``The fight became bitter here to prevent the spread of the flames, for if they could pass this point the entire block to High Street would probaly be consumed,'' the newspaper said. By 2 p.m., though, Simpson said the fire was under control.
Photo: Fire Division web siteFire Chief J. Mike Beers (right) receives Ohio Fire Executive diploma from Stan Crosley, president of the Ohio Fire Chiefs' Association.
J. Mike Beers - current chief of the Springfield Fire Rescue Division - graduated from the Ohio Fire Executive program on May 7, 2004.
The OFE program is an intensive, two-and-a-half year executive education course for senior fire service officers. The graduation ceremony was held on the campus of the Ohio State University in Columbus.
Beers, who served as a firefighter and paramedic, was appointed to the fire division in 1975 and advanced through the ranks.
In 1991, he was promoted from captain to assistant chief, upon the retirement of Assistant Chief James Oldham. In 2000, Beers was appointed fire chief.
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PREVIOUS FIRE CHIEFS
Nathaniel Cook 1854 (Volunteer)
James Cushman 1855 (Volunteer)
Abram Ludlow 1856-1857 (Volunteer)
Jeremiah Klinefelter 1857-1859 (Volunteer)
William Blakeny 1859-1865 (Volunteer)
Abram Ludlow 1865-1871
Robert King 1891-1879
J. Christie Holloway 1879-1882
William Moore Jr. 1882-1884
Ed Simpson 1884-1895
George Follrath, 1895-1904
Samuel Hunter, 1904-1928 (Hired from outside fire division)
Louis Locher, 1928-1934
Grover Frock, 1934-1952
Willard Compton, 1952-1963
John Gnau, 1963-1970
Frank Trempe Jr. 1970-1980
William Edgington 1980-1983
William Casey 1984-1989 (Served as acting chief before appointment. Also acted as temporary city manager.)
Donald Lee 1992-1997 (Served as acting chief before appointment )
Frank Montes De Oca Jr. 1997-2000 (Hired from outside fire division)
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CHIEFS' ASSOCIATION
Over the years, three of Springfield's fire chiefs served as presidents of the Ohio Fire Chiefs' Association:
1958-59
Chief Willard C. Compton
1937-38
Chief Grover L. Frock
1919-21
Chief Samuel F. Hunter
Additionally, the chief's association presented its Distinguished Service Award to retired Springfield Fire Chief Frank Trempe in 1983. The members of Box 27 Associates received the Distinguished Service Award a year earlier.
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CHIEF LUDLOW
In the 1800s, former Springfield Fire Chief A.R. Ludlow, who also served as the city's Police and Fire Commissioner, ran for Governor of Ohio on the anti-liquor Prohibition ticket.
The Great Depression crippled the economy in the 1930s and Springfield's firefighters banded together to prevent job cuts.
``Revenues were inefficient to meet the payroll,'' according to Calvin Roberds' book ``From Buckets to Diesels.'' ``A severe cutback in manpower was proposed.''
Instead, the firefighters ``proved their strong bonds of brotherhood'' and agreed to give up a day of pay each week, Roberds wrote.
The agreement, signed during November 1930, ``kept on duty - and on the payroll - many men who otherwise would have been laid off from work,'' Roberds wrote.
Across Ohio, the state's unemployment rate reached 37.3 percent by 1932, according to the Ohio Historical Society.
As the depression deepended, the city was forced to close Fire Station No. 2 and Fire Station No. 8 in 1932.
Station No. 8 ``was opened again after a very short time of closure but No. 2 engine house remained closed,'' effective Sept. 7, 1932, according to Roberds' book.
Other municipal services suffered. In March 1936, public schools ``closed for lack of funds,'' according to the Clark County Historical Society.
Businesses declared bankruptcy and banks restricted withdrawals to halt a run on deposits in 1933.
Even as the number of fire alarms increased during the 1930s, the city cut spending on supplies and apparatus, placing a ``severe strain on existing equipment,'' Roberds wrote. ``Bursting hose was a problem encountered at many of the working fires.''
What's more, a pair of 1902 American LaFrance steam fire engines remained on the fire division's apparatus roster as spares during the Great Depression. The steamers were housed at Station No. 6 and Station No. 8, according to the apparatus roster for 1936. They remained in reserve until 1940 or 1941.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO of Springfield firefighters extricating the driver of a truck that was struck by a Norfolk Southern locomotive on March 30, 2004. The collision occurred on Zischler Street and the locomotive pushed the truck a half mile east to Isabella Street, according to the AP.
Photo: Fire Division web site
Photo: Fire Division web site
From left to right, front row: David Johnson, Patrick Hayes, Tristan Walker, Andy Cantrell and John Readler. Back row: Bruce Kelley, Henry Rosasco, Charles Alexander, Wallace Sothard and Sean Pierce.
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Fire Station No. 8
735 West Pleasant Street
YAHOO! search located this photo of Station No. 8 on FLICKR
Of course, there is no such thing as a ``routine call'' in the fire service.
Each alarm has its risks.
A day earlier, a New York Central passenger train collided with Truck 1 at Washington Street and Fountain Avenue, killing firefighter Alfred E. Kime, 33.
The firemen were responding to a report of a chimney fire at 133 West Main Street, the residence of Patricia Kadel.
About a year after the East Street Shops fire, Springfield was the site of another conflagration. In the early hours of Feb. 19, 1903, a general alarm fire destroyed Black's Opera House, the YMCA and other downtown buildings at Main and Fountain streets.
A wall collapsed, killing a jewelry store owner and two employees removing merchandise from the premises. Three others were injured in the collapse. The search for the victims went on until nightfall even though the was was declared under control by midday.
Several firefighters suffered injuries ranging from frostbite to smoke inhalation.
Perhaps somewhat unusual for the early 20th century, the initial alarm for the fire at Black's Opera House was received by telephone instead of the street box, and the fire alarm operator struck Box 12 to alert the city's firehouses.
Like the East Street Shops, firefighters encountered water problems.
Snow and ice delayed firefighters from locating the street connection for their ``Lowry Hydrants.''
Lowry flush hydrants ``were generally carried on the back of fire engines and other apparatus and attached to a connection in the street which when attached provided water for fire protection,'' according to the web site FireHydrant.org.
Additionally, the Springfield Press Republic newspaper questioned Follrath's tactics, according to Benjamin. ``No ladders were used and the firemen were wasting energy as well as water in the lack of a competent leader,'' the Press Republic said.
In the aftermath of the second conflagration, the city replaced Follrath. Samuel Hunter, an outsider and a veteran of the Columbus Fire Department, was apppointed chief in March 1904 and he introduced a sweeping program of reforms.
May 22, 1922 - Springfield Fire Chief Samuel Hunter (standing, far right) as member of advance committee for August 1922 meeting of International Association of Fire Engineers in San Francisco
Samuel F. Hunter was appointed fire chief of Springfield in 1904 - an era during which cities wrested control of municipal government from political parties to professional managers.
``The fire department was a political football kicked around by the whims and fancies of the city council,'' Fire Capt. Cal Roberds wrote in his 1978 history book ``From Buckets to Diesels.''
An outsider and former member of the Columbus Fire Division, Hunter instituted a series of reforms - including a clear chain of command - and oversaw the mechanization of the city's fleet of engines.
On April 1, 1904, he assumed command of about 40 firefighters, who were on continuous duty, with the exception of mealtime, and received one day off in ten, according to Roberds. There were also 27 horses.
Four of the city's six fire companies were equipped with horse-drawn, steam-powered pumpers - state-of-art apparatus at the start of the 20th Century. The roster also included an aerial ladder and a city service ladder truck.
Hunter replaced the much-maligned George Follrath, who served from 1895-1904 and was criticized for mismanagement in the aftermath of fires at the East Street Shops in 1902 and Black's Opera House and "The Levee" riots in 1904.
Follrath also faced problems of internal dissent as well as drunkenness and fighting among the firemen.
Hunter enjoyed a longer tenure - and retired in 1928.
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ABOUT THE PHOTO: Full caption - ``Top Row, L. to R.: Chief Wm. Bywater of Salt Lake City, Chief Peter D. Carter of Camden N.J. - Chief Thos. R. Murphy of San Francisco - Chief August Gerstrung of Elizabeth, N.J. - Chief Ed. T. Murphy of Buffalo, N.Y. - Chief Samuel Boyde of Noxville [Knoxville], Tenn. - Chief Samuel H. (cq) Hunter of Springfield, Ohio. Front Row: Chief Jas. Mulcahey, Sect. of Yonkers, N.Y. - Chief Frank G. Reynold, Pres. of Augusta, Georgia - and Chief Chas. Ringer of Minneapolis, Minnesota.''
Collection of Bancroft Library
University of California, Berkeley.
Photo: Ohio Air National Guard
Photo: WHIO-TVBy Lucas Sullivan of Springfield News-Sun
Carol Joseph could see the falling debris and the smoke through the door of the East Liberty Street house she was pounding on.
There was no answer as the driver of a Springfield City Schools bus looked back to see the bus idling in the middle of the road on March 11, 2008.
"It was in the middle of the road and people just started to go around it," Joseph said. "But this house was on fire."
Joseph kept pounding and yelling.
Suddenly, a man emerged at about 7:55 a.m. still shaking off the sleep.
Then out came a woman as debris continued to fall from the second floor turned apartment.
Luckily, no one was up there.
If it wasn't for Joseph jumping out of her empty bus and pounding on the door, fire officials said things could have turned out much worse for the people inside.
"(Joseph) gets a big thank you from me and should be acknowledged by the community for stepping in to help those people," said Nick Heimlich, assistant city fire chief. "It's a selfless act and one that is needed in a time like that."
But Joseph, a city schools bus driver for five years, doesn't want recognition for her actions.
"I would hope anyone would do that if they saw smoke coming from a house," she said. "But I left (that day) before the TV crews pulled up. I just wanted to make sure everyone was out of the house."
The house at 24 E. Liberty St. was not destroyed and the people Joseph rescued have since relocated.
Heimlich said his investigation has determined the fire was arson that started on the second floor.
He did not release the names of the people involved and is awaiting analysis of the materials officials think were used to start the fire.
Joseph said it makes no difference to her if the fire was set intentionally or not. "I just acted on instinct. Then I got back in my bus and drove off."
Lagonda House, Springfield, Ohio
Early 20th Century post card of old Central Engine House and the city's first motorized engine. (The firefighter seated closest to the camera appears to be Fire Chief Samuel Hunter.)
TODAY
SFD web site photo of Truck 5 at house fire on Pleasant Street in November 2007.
Photo: Springfield News Sun
Point and click on photo for details
Photos: Local 333 web siteFor a century, the giant Crowell-Collier printing plant defined the Springfield skyline, at first heralding the city's prosperity - and then its slow decline.
On May, 10, 1999, a general alarm gutted the plant, which occupied a city block on the edge of Springfield's downtown.
Crowell-Collier, publisher of Collier's Magazine, had left town in 1956, and the eight-story building had been used primarily as a warehouse after the company's departure and the loss of 2,275 jobs. The primary occupant at the time of the fire was Dixie Distributing.
The first arriving units at 200 West High Street were Engine 5, Engine 4 and Battalion 1, according to the Springfield Professional Firefighters Association.
The first alarm was received at 10:18 a.m. The weather was sunny. The temperature was 84 degrees Farenheit. Winds were calm.
In its front-page account of the fire, the Springfield News-Sun reported:
Flames worked their way up from the third floor, devouring each subsequent level until bursting through the roof above the eighth floor. ... Windows on the building were blown out by the heat, and glass fell to the sidewalks. Hundreds of small aerosol cans stored inside the building exploded in a constant popping, with occasional louder thuds from larger explosions.
Two firefighters were injured, and several civilians were treated for the effects of smoke and fumes, according to the News-Sun.
Fire crews pounded the flames with an estimated 1 million gallons of water during the eight-hour battle, the newspaper said, noting that the City of Springfield typically uses 12 million gallons of water a day.
In all, 125 city firefighters and 60 township firefighters assisted at the blaze, with the last companies taking up on May 13.
`Good old days'
On its editorial page, the News-Sun said the fire destroyed a part of the city's history.
The Crowell-Collier building, the newspaper said:
... thrived during a time when life was centered in the downtown area. People would walk the streets, stop, shop and dine all the time in the shadow of a building which represented the city's prosperity. It was a place where wages were good and work was steady. ... People in this city still talk about the good old days when the publisher was a major employer.
The closing of the Springfield plant coincided with the company's decision to fold its flagship magazine.
Time Magazine reported on that fateful decision in an article called ``Crowell Colliers Christmas'' in its Dec. 24, 1956 issue.
In addition to closing Colliers Magazine, the company also folded its Woman's Home Companion magazine.
The Ohio Historical Alliance, which is dedicated to historical preservation, published this history of the magazine and the building on its web site:
Founded in New York by David Collier in 1895 as Collier's Weekly Magazine, Collier's was the main challenger to the dominance of the Saturday Evening Post as America's favorite household magazine of the era. The name of the magazine was shortened in the first years of the 20th century when the word “weekly” was dropped from the masthead. In the age before electronic media Collier's was a mix of news, features, tame humor and short stories-- a format that is virtually non-existent today.
The magazine was also recognized for its art work and illustrations. Among the famous who contributed to Collier's was Maxfield Parrish - recognized in the early 20th century as the most popular illustrator of the day.
Colliers and its relationship with Springfield began when the magazine and its interests were acquired by the Crowell Publishing Company.
Their modern facility -- built in 1924 -- had most of the capacity that the magazine would require, although future expansion would be required to accommodate circulation increases.
Manufacturing would remain in Springfield, however the newly formed Crowell Collier moved its editorial offices to New York in order to be closer to the "center" of the publishing industry.
In 1925 the editor of Collier's sent three reporters on a nationwide tour to look at the effects of Prohibition. They found wide spread corruption and graft within law enforcement and as a result, Collier's became the first national publication to call for repeal of the 18th Amendment.
Colliers lost 3,000 readers but overall circulation shot up by an additional 400,000 new readers. Circulation of the magazine declined steadily after 1950 as radio, television and the rise of a new generation of national news weekly’s – including Time, Life and Newsweek – adapted to the changing national tastes.
Compounding Collier's problems was the television industry which provided less expensive advertising then the magazine could afford. While the Saturday Evening Post exists today in monthly format, Collier's Magazine ceased publication on December 16, 1956.
Panorama of early motorized equipment.
The city's first motorized fire engine was nicknamed the "Buzz Wagon" - pictured here in downtown Springfield.
Mad River Township firefighters
Moorefield Township fire station
Examples of Pulmotor
Long before today's paramedics, the Springfield Fire Division acquired a "Pulmotor" resuscitator in 1916 to provide emergency aid.
The pressure-driven device - also known as a "Lungmotor" or "Lung-o-motor" - allowed firemen to help people in respiratory distress, according to Fire Capt. Cal Roberds' book "From Buckets to Diesels." A second device was placed in service by 1940.
The ``inhalator squad'' responded aboard a pumper or a chief's car until the introduction of a full-time Emergency Squad van in 1949.
The electric company also fielded a resuscitator squad, a common practice in many cities to assist victims of electrocution.
A typical run occurred on Feb. 8, 1938, when according to the Springfield Daily News, Howard Kisling, 38, of 724 ½ Grant Street, suffered a fatal heart attack in a downtown office.
``The inhalator squad of the city fire department and the Ohio Edison Co. first aid squad worked nearly two hours in an attempt to revive him,'' according to an obituary posted on the Ancestry.com web site. ``Coroner Austin Richards said death was caused by acute cardiac failure.’’
In another incident, according to the Daily News, Rebecca Ann Lewis, 78, of 1520 Selma Road, died March 15, 1950 at City Hospital after a heart attack. ``The Fire Department inhalator squad was called to administer oxygen in an attempt to save her life,'' according to another obituary on Ancestry.com.
Support and Air 27 at Station No. 4
TELEGRAPHIC TICKS
Engine 10
In 1997, two members of the Springfield Fire Rescue Division received Ohio Fire Service Valor Award medals for risking their lives to save another.
Following is an account of their heroism:
``Responding to an apartment fire at 1136 North Fountain Avenue on March 3, 1996, Springfield Lieutenant Patrick J. Casey and Firefighter Paramedic Brian Wirth searched all four apartments for possible victims.
"With no hoseline for protection, they first checked the two downstairs apartments. Finding no occupants, they proceeded to the second floor, encountering heavy smoke in the hallway. Lt. Casey found a second floor apartment unoccupied as he heard Firefighter Wirth shout from the other apartment that he had found a victim.
"Upon entering the apartment, Lt. Casey met heavy smoke and heat, but he located Firefighter Wirth and the unconscious victim on the living room floor. As flames shot through the adjacent doorway, Lt. Casey positioned his body between the victim and the fire as they carried her to safety.''
In another act of valor, Firefighter Doug Boggs received a letter of commendation from the State of Ohio and the city's Distinguished Service Award for the rescue of a mother and child from a house fire on Lexington Avenue on Sept. 11, 2006.
According to the fire division's web site:
``Not only did FF/PM Boggs step up to perform a role of increased responsibility by serving as acting officer, he led FF/PM Greg Chadwell (a member of only 3 years experience) into adverse conditions without the full personal protective envelope and respiratory protection normally available to entry teams, he correctly controlled the actions of his fellow firefighter and limited his risk exposure, he correctly controlled the victims, he correctly controlled the interior environment, he rescued two individuals and returned to his unit, his peers and his family alive and well.''
Engine 2 - Station No. 7
Reserve Engine 11 - Station No. 6
Truck 9 - Station No.1 
Rescue 1 - Station No. 1
Battalion 1 (Platoon Commander) - Station No. 1
Medic 2 - Station No. 7
Truck 4 - Station No. 4
Engine 3 - Station No. 3
APPARATUS ROSTER at of March 2007
Battalion 1 - 2003 Chevrolet Suburban
Community Education Trailer - 1999 Haulmark
Engine #2 - 1995 Navistar/Pierce
Engine #3 - 1989 Pierce
Engine #6 - 2002 Pierce
Engine #7 - 2004 Pierce
Engine #8 - 2002 Pierce
Engine #10 - 1994 Navistar/Pierce
Engine #11 - 1986 Pierce (Reserve)
Fire Safety Trailer - 2004 Surrey 36BLTD
Hazmat #1 - 2005 Sutphen
Medic #2 - 2003 International/Horton
Medic #3 - 2002 International/Horton
Medic #4 - 1995 International/Horton
Medic #5 - 1997 International/Horton
Medic #6 - 2000 International/1992 Horton
Medic #7 - 2006 International/Medtec
Medic #8 - 2004 International/Horton
Medic #9 - 1993 International/Horton (Reserve)
Medic #10 - 2001 Int’l/1991 Horton
Operations - 1994 Chevrolet Suburban
Rescue #1 - 1998 Luverne/HME
Rescue Trailer - 1999 US Cargo
Truck #4 - 1995 E-One
Truck #5 - 1996 Smeal/HME
Truck #9 - 1993 Sutphen
HONOR GUARD: "Springfield, Ohio, Fire Division honor guard Lt. Matt Smith is reflected in the ax he holds during a memorial service for victims of the Sept. 11 attacks" on the second anniversary, according to the Sept. 12, 2003 edition of the Seattle Times.
Miami Valley Breaking News web photo of house fire
Engine 7 
Medic 7
Truck 5Station No. 5
1707 Commerce Rd.
--------------------
Truck #5 - 1996 Smeal/HME
Station No. 6 +
422 Ludlow Ave.
-----------------
Engine #6 - 2002 Pierce
Medic #6 - 2000 Int’l/1992 Horton (re-chasis)
(+ Combination company - Engine company crew cross-staffs paramedic unit.)
Station No. 7 +
437 E. Home Rd.
-------------------
Engine #2 - 1995 Navistar/Pierce
Engine #7 - 2004 Pierce
Medic #2 - 2003 International/Horton
Medic #7 - 1997 International/Horton
(+ Combination companies - Engine company crews cross-staff paramedic units.)
Station No. 8 +
735. W. Pleasant St.
--------------------
Engine #8 - 2002 Pierce
Engine #10 - 1994 Navistar/Pierce
Medic #8 - 2004 International/Horton
Medic #10 - 2001 Int’l/1991 Horton
(+ Combination companies - Engine company crews cross-staff paramedic units.)
SOURCE: SFD Annual Report 2005
NOTE: Station No. 2 closed in 1932 (Great Depression). Station No. 9 closed in 1974 (municipal budget).
In the early and bitter cold hours of Feb. 1, 1977, a three-alarm blaze trapped students and firefighters inside the 10-story Tower Hall dormitory on the campus of Wittenberg University.
Firefighters used Truck 7's aerial to save two students, one actually named Ed Wittenberg. Crews also rescued the platoon commander and a firefighter trapped on an elevator as flames leapt from the building on Woodlawn Avenue.
Medic 1 transported the students and firefighters to Mercy Medical Center with smoke inhalation.
There had been confusion as to the location of the fire. The signs in the stairwell identifying the floor numbers had been moved. There was also a problem with the standpipe system.
An investigation determined a candle in a student's room started the blaze, which was fueled by a vinyl record collection.
Most of the city's fire apparatus responded to the fire at Tower Hall as did the volunteers of Box 27 Associates.
Later that year, one of the deadliest dormitory fires in U.S history killed 10 women at Providence College in Rhode Island on Dec. 23, 1977. That fire started in a closet. Two hair dryers had been left on to dry wet mittens.
The Wittenberg campus was also the scene of a major fire on Feb. 28, 1900 when flames destroyed the Hamma Divinity School.
Old DowntownOn April 23-24, 1907, flames consumed the Indianapolis Frog and Switch factory in Springfield, which was owned by Charles Warren Fairbanks, vice president of the United States in the administration of Theodore Roosevelt (1905 -1909) .
The factory, which covered more than two acres, was one of the few structures to survive the East Street Shops conflagration - the worst fire in Springfield's history - a few years earlier. Fairbanks had made a fortune as a railroad attorney.
Fairbanks' factory manufactured railroad switching equiment. A frog is ``a device on intersecting railroad tracks that permits wheels to cross the junction,'' according to the American Heritage Dictionary.
The story on the fire appeared on the front page of The New York Times:
``SPRINGFIELD, Ohio, Wednesday, April 24. - The Indianapolis Frog and Switch Works, owned by Vice President Fairbanks, was destroyed by fire last night. The loss was $250,000. The Kelley Road Roller Company and piano plate works are threatened.''
One of the city's newspapers, the Springfield Gazette, said ``a motorman of a passing car'' reported the fire to the Central Engine House by telephone at 10:45 p.m. on Nov. 23. The night watchman, named Wellington, also sounded the alarm from Box 163.
Within 15 minutes ``the entire roof was ablaze and a few minutes after it fell with a mighty crash,'' the Gazette reported.
Realizing the building was lost, Springfield Fire Chief Samuel Hunter ordered firefighters to prevent the flames from spreading, the Gazette reported. Hunter also sounded a general alarm, calling all of the city's fire companies to the inferno.
``The fire made a huge red glow that could be seen from all parts of the city, and it looked as if the eastern part of the city was on fire,'' the Gazette reported.
Natural gas explosions may have caused the fires as residents near the Indianapolis Switch and Frog plant, which was built in the 1880s, ``heard three muffled reports shortly before they noticed the fire,'' the Gazette reported. Furnaces in the shops were fueled by natural gas.
Hunter, quoted by the Gazette, said: ``It is one of those kind of bad fires that is hard to solve. Of course there is no doubt but the flames were fed by gas all the time the department was fighting them. But when the company had turned off the pressure, the deed had been done and the plant was in ashes.''
The Gazette said: ''The most fortunate part of the whole affair (was) that no one was killed'' although ``Fireman Harry Huffman of Engine House No. 5 had several fingers cut while pushing a hose through a window.''
Additionally, Fairbanks ``was loud in his praise of the work of Chief Hunter and the fire department, and stated that they did all that a human person could do,'' according to the Gazette.
DAILY DOUBLE - 1925
On May 12, 1925, Springfield was the scene of two general alarm fires.
The first blaze occurred at the Springfield Abattoir Co at Mill Run and Buck Creek. (An abattoir is a slaughterhouse.) The fire broke out at 2 p.m. and the flames destroyed the cowshed and barns, according to the Springfield Daily News. The fire also destroyed some livestock.
The second general alarm fire that day broke out at the Brain Lumber Co. at East and Harrison streets. The initial ararm was transmitted at 7:20 p.m. with the general alarm following 10 minutes later, according to the Daily News.
The newspaper reported:
The fire started when a thick coating of oil on the surface of Mill Run, paralleing the lumber yard, became ignited from an unknown cause. Flames shot high into the air, and within a few minutes after the first fire company arrived on the scene, the fire had reached one of the buildings of the lumner company and then quickly spread to the others.
From the Mill Run, the flames first spread to a building in which shingles were stored, and numerous other buildings in which finished and rough lumber was stored, were quickly ignited in turn.
The newspaper estimated that the blaze, which was visible from across the city, attracted between 5,000 and 10,000 spectators.
The fire also destroyed three railroad boxcars loaded with lumber.
Firebrands from the lumber company ignited rowhouse roofs along Harrison Street, and firefighters alternately played their hoselines on the lumber yard and the dwellings. Some of the residents turned their garden hoses on the flames.
The worst of the flames were contained in about an hour and firefighters wet down the debris throughout the night.
The citizens of Springfield, in turn, showed their appreciation and ``baskets of sanwiches and kettles of steaming coffee were served to the men as they worked in the cold hours around midnight,'' the Daily News said. ``Boxes of cigars were also passed out to the firemen by the officials of the Brain Co.''
CONFLAGRATION - 1840
In 1840, Springfield suffered an economic disaster.
According to Beers' 1881 ``History of Clark County: ''
Hitherts the town had been fortunately preserved from fire. The loss of an occasional building of but little value was the most serious damage. But, on the evening of February 21, 1840, an extensive conflagration occurred, which at one time threatened to sweep the entire place. It consumed the entire business block from Maddox Fisher's block on Main street to the alley west of Limestone street, and also the building now known as the St. James Hotel. The buildings destroyed had been but recently erected, and were nearly all store-rooms. The enterprising proprietors were not prostrated by their sudden loss, but immediately began to replace the sites with durable structures of modern pattern, which were a credit to the town. Nearly all the printing materials of the Pioneer office were destroyed by this fire, which delayed the publication of the page four weeks.
Another account in the 1852 booklet ``Sketches of Springfield'' said:
Springfield was visited with a heavy conflagration, which destroyed two large brick buildings, then known as `Linn' and `Murray's' Rows. These buildings had been recently built, and were principally occupied as store rooms. These enterprising gentlemen, (Messrs. Linn and Murray) soon replaced these sites by fine Rows which now are an ornament to this city. This fire originated in a livery stable back of Linn's building.
AGRICULTURAL WORKS - 1873
The shops of the Springfield Agricultural Works went up in flames on June 2, 1873.
The agricultural works - a plant that encompassed 80,000 feet of floor - ``were almost totally destroyed by fire, just when most needed to get out work for the fall trade,'' according to Beer's 1881 history of Clark County.
The shops, which manufactured grain drills, cultivators and cider-mills were ``rebuilt at once.''
RENDERING MUTUAL AID
According to the 1900 book ``Illustrated History of Dayton Fire Department,'' Dayton requested mutual aid from Springfield and other cities on Feb. 1, 1900 - a date ``memorable to Dayton firemen'' - when flames destroyed a large warehouse.
In the era before motorized vehicles and paved highways, fire equipment was often sent by ``special train'' on distant mutual aid runs.
The book reported:
It was a bitter cold morning with a high wind blowing, when they were called to J. P. Wolf & Sons tobacco warehouse, on the corner of First and Foundry Streets. The flames spread rapidly, and for a time it looked as if the department was unequal to the task of extinguishing them. Aid from Cincinnati, Columbus and Springfield was asked for ... The men fought the flames heroically for hours, always at a great disadvantage, due to inadequate water pressure, the intense cold and high wind. ... This was the largest fire Dayton has suffered since the Turner Opera House fire in 1869.
Between 1889 and 1904, the fire divison made at least 22 mutual aid runs to as far away as Columbus, Dayton and Washington Court House, according to Roberds' 1978 book. Engine 2 and Reel 1 made almost all of the out-of-town runs.
On April 26, 1903, Springfield sent reinforcements to Columbus for a general alarm fire that engulfed Union Clothing Co., Botts Bros., Kirbys and the Brunson Building. Sadly, veteran Columbus Fire Captain Dan Lewis, of Hook & Ladder 2, was buried under falling walls and died of his injuries, according to the Columbus Fire Division.
Springfield firefighters also responded to Columbus on Nov. 24, 1893 for a fire at the Henrietta Opera House.
INTERNATIONAL STEEL WOOL
``Signal 3!'' - Working fire! Throughout the 1970s - and in the years before that - the fire division made regular runs to the International Steel Wool plant.
The process of manufacturing steelwool was prone to fire, and the fire division's foam unit - Foam 11 - was placed in service for alarms at the steelwool plant, as well as other industrial sites. Foam 11 was converted from Engine 3's old 1947 American LaFrance pumper in 1976. (Foam 11 was parked at Station No. 1)
The plant was the site of general alarm fire on Sept. 18, 1948 at which ``Old Marie'' - a 1922 American LaFrance engine - saw action, according to Roberds' book.
International Steel Wool left town in 2001.
Limestone Steet at night, circa 1930 
Crowell-Collier 
Heritage Center (Old City Building)
Clark County Courthouse
Wittenberg University on postage stamp
Downtown Springfield
Limestone Street, circa 1925
Main Street, vintage view
Old Railroad Depot, downtown Springfield
Honor Roll - Springfield and Clark County, Ohio
John Dawson - Feb. 24, 1857
Volunteer Firefighter Dawson was crushed by a falling portico at a house fire on East High Street, according to the Diary of Joseph Osborne as well as Springfield Fire Capt. Cal Roberds' history book, "From Buckets to Diesels."
John Powell - June 25, 1873
Hoseman Powell of the Western Fire Company fell to his death while advancing a hose line to a fire in the belfry of the First Lutheran Church at Wittenberg Avenue and High Street.
Lightning had started the fire.
Powell was a veteran of the Civil War, having served in a local regiment, the 74th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, according to the 1881 book ``History of Clark County.'' The regiment participated in the battles of Hoover's Gap, Dug Gap, Chickamauga, Lookout Mountain and Missionary Ridge, according to the book.
Superintendent of Fire Alarm Bosley, 45, was seriously injured in fall from a telegraph pole and died at City Hospital. Bosley, who joined the fire service in the 1880s as a ``minute man,'' was appointed a regular fireman on Sept. 1, 1892. He also served as vice president of the National Association of Municipal Electricians.
According to the Springfield Daily News on the day of the accident:
``Bosley was working on a pole on Main Street, just west of Burnett Road, being near the cross bar, which was about ten feet from the top of a 50 foot pole. His assistant, George Bauer, was on another pole, three poles away ... They were stringing wires. Suddenly, Bosley fell.''
The following day's Daily News added:
"Bosley was still conscious upon his arrival at the hospital and recognzied his wife to whom he spoke three times with one word, `Darling.'''
In many cities, firefighters were responsible for maintenance of municipal fire alarm telegraph systems. A firefighter in Columbus died in a similar accident in 1911.
Walter Reinheimer - Jan. 3, 1920
Firefighter Reinheimer, 34, was recovering from injuries sustained at a fire at Kresge's five and ten cent store on East Main Street on Nov. 7 1919, when he suffered ``a stroke of apoplexy'' at his home, according to the Springfield Daily News.
Reinheimer, who had been a fireman at the Central Engine House for three years, ``was well liked by all who knew him,'' the newspaper said.
A resolution adopted by the captains of the city's nine engine houses said Reinheimer ``set an example of service and self-sacrifice, which is inspiring.''
Reinheimer had been overcome by smoke at the fire. ``He never fully recovered from his injuries, although it was throught he was improving,'' the newspaper said.
He was survived by his wife, Anna, and three children - Edwin, Charles and LaMar.
In its account of the fire, the Daily News reported in its Nov. 8 edition that firefighters ``were badly handicapped by the dense smoke'' and that ``it was impossible for the men to locate the seat of the fire because they could not get into the basement.''
What's more, ``gas masks which were purchased recently by the government were called into play but useless under the conditions,'' the Daily News said.
Several hours after the fire, Reinheimer was take to City Hospital. He ``was suffering from congestion of the lungs ... and could hardly breath,'' the newspaper said.
The rest of the firemen ``were in bad condition from the exposure and strain on their lungs and eyes,'' the Daily News said.
Charles Deam - Jan. 14, 1926
Firefighter Deam, 33, was fatally injured when a commercial truck collided with the pumper from the Central Fire Station at Main Street and Belmont Avenue, according to the Morning Sun. Deam suffered a fractured skull and other injuries. He died at City Hospital.
Another firefighter, John Miller, 34, was also hurt.
The pumper, driven by Captain Edward Garrity, was enroute to an alarm at 705 North Belmont Avenue. Garrity wasn't injured.
The pumper had stopped before entering the intersection ``in accordance with the arterial highway stop order,'' the Sun said. Deam ``was riding on the platform of the rear of the pumper'' and ``when the impact came, he was hurled from the platform,'' the newspaper said.
The pumper, itself, was thrown 25 feet into a utility pole. The driver of the commercial truck said he couldn't stop his vehicle because the streets were slippery after a snowfall. Witnesses said the commercial truck was traveling as fast as 30 mph.
Roy Kelly - March 27, 1932
Kelly, 43, the marshal and ranking officer at Station No. 8, died after taking ill with ``an attack of acute indigestion,'' according to a newspaper account.
He was appointed to the fire division in 1916, promoted to lieutenant in 1920 and marshal in 1928. Kelly ``was regarded by his commanding officers as an excellent leader of men,'' the newspaper said.
Augustus C. Brown - May 11, 1936
Firefighter Brown, a 31-year veteran assigned to Station No. 5, died after ``a week's illness,'' according to the Springfield Daily News. He was 63.
Hugh Garrity - Jan. 7, 1948
Captain Garrity, 69, was overcome by smoke at a house fire at 903 Mound Street, according to the Springfield Daily News.
Garrity, the first man into the fire, had been a member of the fire division for 44 years.
Garrity was in the attic battling the flames when the platoon chief, Luke Marmion, sent him outside for air. After a short break, Garrity went back inside and collapsed on the first floor.
``Chief Marmion immediately called the inhalator squad and an ambulance,'' the newspaper said. ``En route to the hospital, Lt. Joe Heizen tried to revived Capt. Garrity who was described at `partly conscious.'''
Garrity was the brother of the fire division's assistant chief, Edward Garrity. His son, Paul, was a member of the Piqua (Ohio) Fire Department.
Alfred Kime - May 22, 1949
Fire Chief Grover Frock placed the blame for Firefighter Kime's death on the citizens of Springfield. Kime, 33, died May 22, 1949 when a train collided with Truck 1 as it was answering an alarm from the old Central Engine House.
The fire station was located near the city's main railroad lines. A few years earlier voters had defeated a municipal bond issue to move the fire station to a safer location. What's more, the old firehouse - built in 1876 for horse-drawn wagons - was in disrepair.
Two firefighters were permanently disabled in a train collision at the same grade crossing in March 1903, and the Ohio State Fire Marshal, citing the proximity of the railroad tracks, recommended relocating the station in 1924.
For Chief Frock - who had lobbied for a new central station - the accident was the last straw, and he issued a ``denunciation that put part of the responsibility on the shoulders of Springfield citizens,'' according to The Springfield Daily News.
"Had the people of Springfield voted for the bond issue three years ago to move the firehouse from this dangerous location, this accident would not have happened," Frock said.
At about 8:45 p.m. on that Sunday night in 1949, the alarm sounded for a chimney fire at 133 West Main Street, the home of Patricia Kadel.
As the fire apparatus left the station and approached the crossing, the railroad guard, J.H. Duckworth, flagged through the chief's car, driven by Captain Willard Compton, according to the Daily News. (Compton was accompanied by a visiting fireman, Lieutenant Peter Leach of the Memphis, Tennessee, Fire Department.)
Truck 1 followed with a crew of four Springfield firefighters. Kime was the tillerman, steering the rear of the 85-foor aerial ladder truck. James Walker was driving, according to the newspaper. Robert Snider and Robert O'Neil made up the balance of the crew.
Duckworth, the crossing guard, attempted to flag down the New York Central's eastbound ``Mohawk'' streamliner as it approached the crossing at about 8 to 10 mph, according to the Daily News. The nine-car passenger train, bound for Cleveland from Cincinnati, was on time for its 8:50 p.m. stop at the Springfield station.
The newspaper said:
The big truck was struck a fraction of a second before it cleared the tracks, the train's engine crumbling a left rear wheel and part of the frame.
Mr. Kime was riding on the extreme rear of the vehicle, acting as rear steersman for the long truck. He was thrown to the street and landed about 20 feet from the crash site.
Mr. Snider was riding on the right side of the truck and was putting on his boots when the equipment was hit. He said he did not see the train coming and was dazed in the crash.
The other two firefighters escaped injury. Truck 1 stopped about 60 feet east of the crossing. It careened across Wasington street and struck an unoccupied City cab but remained on its wheels, the Daily News said.
A pedestrian, Ramona Costillo, was injured by debris.
Kime, stilling clinging to life, was taken to the City Hospital with a fractured skull. He died about to hours later. The doctors in Springfield had summoned a brain specialist from Dayton but Kime died before the specialist arrived, the newspaper said.
Snider was treated for injuries to his right shoulder and elbow and was release. Miss Costillo was also treated and released.
The train, meantime, continued on its way about 10 minutes after the accident. New York Central Railroad officials said the locomotive suffered ``little or no damage.''
Firefighter Walker, who was driving Truck 1, made the following statement to Fire Chief Grover Frock, according to the Daily News:
I answered the alarm. Went north on Fountain Avenue. No flagman in sight. Could not see train because of the Hotel Francis. Cross the tracks and was struck by the train engine. Shut off my motor and saw Fireman Kime was injured. Crawled through the train doors and returned to the engine house to summon aid.
The owner of the damaged taxicab, S.F. Bronstrup, said: "I was just coming out of the Arcade Hotel when I heard the crash. I saw a man lying in the street and called an ambulannce immediately."
Kime's death set the wheels in motion for the new Central Engine House that opened in September 1953 at 350 North Fountain Avenue - roughly a half mile north of the old firehouse and a safe distance from the railroad tracks.
According to the Daily News:
Joe Sterling, city commission president, said shortly after the accident Sunday night that a relocation program is included as one of the second year projects he engineered throug the city income tax.
At almost the same time, Carl Berg, executive secretary of the Springfield Chamber of Commerce, called the mishap timely ammunition for talks with high rail officials in an effort to iron out the city's traffic problems.
The talks with the top men of the major rail lines serving Springfield are schedules to begin Tuesday in Hotrel Shawnee, Mr. Berg asserted.
Funds for the new station ``had, in the main, been made possible by the 1 percent income tax that the citizens were paying to the city,'' Springfield Fire Captain Calvin Roberds wrote in his 1978 book ``From Buckets to Diesels.
Willard Dale Ritenour, Tremont City - Nov. 4, 1963
Ritenour, a member of the old Tremont City Fire Department, was apparently electrocuted while fighting a grass fire in Clark County.
Brian Fleming - July 17, 2005According to The Springfield News-Sun:
Fleming spent nine years as an active-duty firefighter with the Springfield Fire and Rescue Division and died of congestive heart failure at his home less than 24 hours after his shift ended. With no known medical conditions, the stresses of Fleming's job were thought to have contributed to his unforeseen death, said Pat Casey, president of the Springfield IAFF Local 333.
In September 2006, Fleming was honored with 241 others at the 20th International Association of Fire Fighters Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial Observance in Colorado Springs.
