By Lynda Guydon Taylor
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (Pennsylvania)
Copyright 2006 P.G. Publishing Co.
The bare-bones decor, spartan single beds and fridge stocked with plenty of pop suggest “bachelor pad” or, at least, a dorm-like existence.
But the place is spotless and orderly, despite the lived-in look sported by the sofa and easy chairs. Coffee mugs are neatly placed on wall-mounted shelves. Dirty dishes in the sink? Not a chance. And get this: The linoleum floor gets buffed weekly.
OK, so it’s not a bachelor pad, nor a frat house and neither is it dorm living.
How could nine guys share space so neatly?
They are firefighters, that’s how. They thrive on order.
The Central Fire Station of the Washington Fire Department, at 45 Wheeling St., is home away from home for the nine firefighters assigned there. (The department’s other eight members are assigned to the Tylerdale station.)
The station includes all of the basics of communal living — shelter, shower, beds and food, necessary because the firefighters work 24-hour shifts followed by 48 hours off. The station is staffed 24/7.
Just like husbands and wives or roommates seeking order and cleanliness, routine is key.
“Firemen don’t like change. They do it the same way for 100 years,” said Gary Friend, a 15-year veteran, driver engineer and president of Local 2218, International Association of Firefighters.
These firemen have their routine down to a T.
Mondays, they maintain equipment. The first Tuesday of the month, pumps are checked to ensure proper operation. Wednesdays are pole cleaning days. Think they slide down a dirty pole? Think again. Thursdays it’s time to check air packs. If it’s Friday, it must be time to mop and buff the floors.
Just like a home, their quarters are separated into public and private spaces. The public area is downstairs, where visitors are greeted, firetrucks are parked and two washing machines are stationed, one for cleaning clothes and the other for hoses.
Hoisted on hooks for drying, the hoses hang in an open-air space resembling an elevator shaft. Nearby is special equipment for filling the air tanks they carry on their backs during a fire.
Private space on the second floor is devoted into sleeping, eating, showering, exercising and relaxing. On walls leading to the second floor are the “family” photos. Here hang pictures of the department’s first six chiefs, the obligatory “no smoking” sign and memorable fires.
Climbing the stairs to the second floor, Mr. Friend and Joe Manning, driver engineer and vice president of Local 2218, recounted the memories. Looking at one photo, they recalled the day of the tire fire started on an 11-acre site on Stewart Avenue. Tires burned for 10 days.
“I was with Gary that day. He said, ‘I don’t think we’re going to eat dinner [tonight].’ I said, ‘I don’t think we’re going to eat ever,’ ” Mr. Manning recalled with a smile.
Another photo brings to mind the woman who started a blaze when burning garbage in her garage. Then there’s the picture capturing a memorable old firetruck. All in all, they call it their “wall of shame” for those fires that could have been avoided had more care been taken.
At the landing, a visitor gets a glimpse of the living quarters from the hallway. To the left is the living room, furnished simply with a sofa, three easy chairs, two end tables and a television set. A bookcase is stocked with reading material, including the National Geographic, and videos, among them a Three Stooges movie.
Beyond the living room is the dining table and chairs and all-steel kitchen, equipped with a microwave oven and Toastmaster oven.
The refrigerator is stocked with plenty of pop, condiments and a large container of parmesan cheese.
“We do a lot of pasta,” Mr. Friend said.
There are some great cooks in the house, he said. Several plaques attest to their culinary skills in pulling off several first-place finishes in chili cookoffs.
On the wall are group photos, taken every five years, as well as historic pictures such as the one of the original volunteer force, known as the Little Giant Fire Company.
At one time, firefighters pulled the fire wagon through the streets by hand rather than using horses, Mr. Manning said. Another photo shows fire horses Frank and Harry, when manpower gave way to horse power.
In one corner is the pole they slide down when a call comes in.
Five single beds — three guys staff each of three shifts — allow them to sleep until the horn signals a fire. On the opposite end of the room are showers.
A seldom-used dart board hangs on one wall but, with all the cleaning, cooking and maintenance going on, who has time to play?
“It seems like when you have a problem and you don’t know where to turn, you call the fire department,” Mr. Friend said of the diverse calls that come any time of day or night.
On the other end of the hallway is the exercise room, full of equipment donated when the Washington YMCA closed.
“It’s just like living at home,” Mr. Friend said.