Editor’s note: This story really strikes a chord for me. I still vividly remember my first real structure fire as a volunteer with the Cabin John Park Volunteer Fire Department in Montgomery County, Maryland.
On that zero dark thirty fire, I found myself dragging a hose line through a metal fence to get to the fire building just as the residential electrical service dropped from the house about thirty feet away, barely missing electrifying the same fence.
Once again, this story emphasizes the importance of maintaining situational awareness on the fireground. It is also vital to recognize that, while we often consider the interior hazards of structural firefighting, we cannot forget that the entire environment is dangerous, both in and outside the involved building(s).
Chief Adam K. Thiel, FireRescue1 Editorial Advisor
By John F. Hill
The Press Enterprise
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — Firefighters battled some unusual obstacles while dousing a blaze Sunday afternoon in Riverside.
The fire started around noon in the rear of a home at Gaylord and Tyler streets, near Norte Vista High School.
When crews arrived, they could hear the popping sounds of exploding ammunition. That plus a downed power line, which had landed on a chain-link fence electrifying it, presented some atypical impediments for firefighters, Battalion Chief Mike Koury said.
“We had a couple of issues there,” Koury said.
The blaze was under control in about an hour. The cause and the extent of damage to the home were not immediately known.
No one was injured. The home’s occupants were away at the time, Koury said.
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