Story/Photos by Shawn Joannes
The Milwaukee Fire Department had it's First 5 Alarm Fire this morning. The
call came in as "dust collector on fire inside the plant" at 07:25:30.
This came in 30 minutes before our shift change. Upon arrival the first
alarm assignment entered the building. At that time the fire was already
going good. Companies stated that it was HOT, the smoke was thick and already banked down to the floor.
The second alarm companies arrived on scene and entered the building as well. Because of all the smoke, heat, and debris in
the building it was hard to find the seat of the fire. The Deputy Chief as
well as Battalion's 6 and 1 saw a Dangerous condition with the stability of
the building and called for an Emergency evacuation of the building. From
this point on it was a defensive operation, for safety reasons.
The Milwaukee
Fire Department is an inside Fire Fighting Department, but is not afraid to
"pull out" as to not compromise firefighter safety. Due to some of the tactics
and strategies we were able to save a lot of the building as well as
buildings and equipment surrounding the building.
