Firehouses

[M CD M]

I thought they mostly did a "Surround and Drown" when it came to vacant home & buildings?

[7051]

http://www.ci.flint.mi.us/fire/FFD%2...re%20Fires.pdf

http://www.ci.flint.mi.us/fire/FFD%2...g%20Policy.pdf


The city of Flint had a study done in 2007 and a policy put in place for vacant building firefighting. The city was interested in this as a hell of a lot of money is wasted on injuries and lost work time from vacant building firefighting. Most big cities have been doing the above for the last 10-15 years. In Detroit, we will probably do this in another 15 years as we are always 15-20 years behind the times. Remember, Detroit city government[[and much of the surrounding municipalities) are stuck in the 1950's/60's when it comes to progressive thinking and problem solving. The above mentioned hidden/long term costs are not even on any Detroit politician or department administrator's mind. They think the rest of the world and country operates like we do.

We have been a bit more careful the last 5-7 years when it comes to vacant/previously burned/structurally unsound vacants when there are no exposures [[no adjacent buildings) and they are "going throughout" [[fire on all floors).

The Flint study dispels the legal myths due to the legal precedent of municipal indemnity already set [[THE CITY IS NOT RESPONSIBLE). It also shows how 98% of vacant buildings are never repaired after a fire[[even in good times) and how 99% of vacants have no one in them [[not even bums/squatters).

The #1 reason we do aggresive interior attacks on vacants is so that we can be done in 45-60mins. instead of a 3 hour ordeal. This is what is required on the average 2,500 sq. ft. single/2 family dwelling common in the central and near west side of the city when fire is allowed to overtake a dwelling, enter the attic, and collapse the roof and roof rafters. Hours of water application and manual digging through the collapsed roof debris which has fallen into the top floor of the building/dwelling must take place to fully extinguish the fire.

In fact, we would easily exhaust the supply of engines/ladders/squads on almost every night if our full box alarm assignment of 3-4engines, 1 ladder, 1 manpower squad and 1 chief was kept on every fire for 3 hours. Of course, we might still have 1,850 firefighters and 95 engines/ladders/squads [[1978) instead of our current 1,100 and 55-65 e/l/s.

With the limited resources the city has know, some progressive thinking is probably due. What about just leaving 1 ladder truck and 1 engine on scene with a vacant going throughout and putting the rest of the box alarm assignment back into service for the next OCCUPIED fire that comes in? A 24 hr. DPW crew of 2 assigned to the fire department with large excavator for tear down/rubble digging for hot spot extinguishment would also be nice and make alot of blocks safer instead of having a 1/2 standing burned piece of crap.

The #2 reason we are aggressive on vacants is the problem of exposure buildings [[immediately adjacent) which are often times occupied and in good shape.

[reddog289]

I agree with 7051 on the DPW crew coming in after the fire. The half empty hulks of buildings around the city are eyesores and possible targets for more fires.

[Dfd]

Remember the firefighters these next few days around devil's night.

[Lowell]

Stay safe and thank you for your service!

[EMG]

For anyone who's interested in photos of the Detroit Fire Department in action, here's another site I just happened to find.

http://www.eastwoodphotography.net/

[Dfd]

Any of you firebrats or firefighters have stories, or even pictures of Thanksgiving at the firehouse?

[DetroitTeacher]

No pics but I remember plenty of Thanksgiving holidays spent without dad, but we knew it was part of his job so it was OK. I never knew anything different. Christmas mornings we couldn't wait for dad to get home [[and get his first cup of java) so we could open presents. We were allowed to open stockings prior to dad's arrival. If dad worked on Christmas day, we did everything on Christmas Eve. Growing up in a neighborhood where dads were either DFD or DPD, we had Christmas for a few days, celebrating with those on opposite shifts! It was a kid's dream! We never quite figured out how Santa knew whose dad was working when...

[Rocko]

Just got word that the old Firehouse at E. Davison at the corner of Goddard is on a list to be demoed in the not so distant future. I'm not sure the history of this firehouse nor the companies that served there over the years...

Also on the list, unrelated though interesting, is the old White Tower burger joint on Woodward just north of McNicholls. Our architectural history is slowly slipping away before our eyes....

[M CD M]

Is the burger joint in the way of that gigantic church that's going up on the northeast corner?

[TONY BOX 42]

E.43 has a short history.Opened in 1921. Closed in 1983.

[M CD M]

Anyone know when the apparatus division starts and stops working during the week?

[M CD M]

I drove by this old station today.
I think someone else has a photo of it, but I don't remember the engine no.
Is it still a church? or is it a home or empty now?

[MikeM]

Engine 40
Ladder 17

[cosine]

MikeM is correct. The station is at Rosa Parks and LaBelle, about 5 blocks north of Davison. Built in 1919. The units [[Engine 40, Ladder 17) moved to Dexter and Ewald Circle in 1980, which is near Oakman and Livernois.

[TONY BOX 42]

MikeM,cosine, Sq.5 would be offended that you ignored them.They didn't locate to
12th. until 1952. M CD M the shop has normal busness hours 8 to 5. Emergency repairman is on duty 24/7.

[Dfd]

I don't know if this has been asked before, but do the DFD firehouses get decorated for Christmas?

[M CD M]

Last year[[around this time of year) when I stopped in at engine 48, they had a X-mas tree in their eating area.

[M CD M]

Anyone been buying up the DFD photo's on *bay?
Here's a few of them that I saved from there
Can anyone name the locations?

[Meddle]

The top one may be Fire Headquarters based on the arched doorway behind the car. Don't know if anyone can pull up that shop number on the car and see when or where it was assigned.

The second is Engine 6, Ladder 5 at Russell & Erskine. For some reason, I seem to remember that FWD.

Can't tell on the third, but somebody might recognize it with the three story porch on the building behind.

Fourth, no way to tell where.

The last is at Headquarters, Washington & Lafayette. Looks like a light rig but I'm not sure I get the loudspeaker.

[birwood]

Meddle & M CD M, the car in the photo is 200's car and is lettered CHIEF between the 5 bugle insignia, shop No is 970.

In photo #3 is Engine 39s old quarters and the area behind it is the old Herman Kiefer Hospital and Sanitorium Complex. If you look close at the photo, there is a Chevy parked behind 39s in the parking lot which stood between the fire quarters and the hospital. Because the car appears to a 60's ish Chevy I'm going to say that is the time frame when part of the old complex is being demolished.

The last photo is the old light rig and it did have a load speaker mounted on the roof....long before the dys of 2 way radios and KQA 205

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL

[DetroitTeacher]

To all the men and women on the DFD: Stay safe out there and have a Merry Christmas!!

[M CD M]

After I visited Central Maintenance today, I found this old station along the freeway.

[birwood]

Thats the quarters of Engine Co. 43, E. Davison & Goddard, disbanded and closed during the Coleman Young administration.

[M CD M]

When I drove by, the 2nd floor ceiling is in real bad shape.
Maybe after this winter, the roof may be on the floor.