By Thomasi McDonald
The News & Observer
Copyright 2007 The News and Observer

RALEIGH, N.C. — Triangle fire departments geared up to send honor guards, donations or wear a black ribbon on their badges in a show of solidarity for the nine Charleston, S.C., firefighters who died Monday night.

"What a punch in the stomach for all of us," Raleigh Fire Chief John McGrath said Tuesday.

The Raleigh and Chapel Hill fire departments plan to send honor guards once the dates are set for funeral and memorial services.

The Durham Fire Department plans to fly flags at their stations at half-staff for a week.

On Tuesday, Chapel Hill's firefighters put thick black ribbons on their badges, Chapel Hill Fire Chief Dan Jones said.

The Bethesda Volunteer Fire Department in Durham County plans to collect money from within the ranks to send to Charleston.

McGrath, who worked in the Philadelphia Fire Department when a 1975 Gulf Oil refinery fire killed eight firemen, also offered to send Raleigh firefighters to help Thomas' department while the South Carolina firefighters come to grips with a blaze that killed nine comrades.

The South Carolina fire resonated with Apex firefighters, dredging up memories of a hazardous waste storage plant fire last fall.

The Oct. 5 blaze at the Environmental Quality Co. sent a thick plume of smoke into the night skies and caused thousands of residents to evacuate their homes. The fire burned for several days.

Apex Fire Chief Chief Mark Haraway said all his firefighters have been glued to reports of the deadly Charleston blaze.

"A fireman is a fireman, no matter where you work," Haraway said.