First-due building fire

 
By Assistant Chief Jonathan Riffe
March 11, 2005
 

On Friday March 11, 2005 at 0741 hours, Company 6 (Huntingtown), Engine 21, Tower 2, Tanker 2 (Prince Frederick), Engine 52, Tanker 5 (Dunkirk), Engine 11 (North Beach), Tanker 7 (St. Leonard), and Truck 3 (Solomons) were alerted to 3500 Solomons Island Road at the Patuxent United Methodist Church for the reported building fire. This church is located directly off of Route 4 in south-central Huntingtown. Due to close proximity with the highway and rush-hour traffic passing by, Communciations received several calls on this and adivsed incoming units of the supplemental information. Chief 6C (Spriggs), Engine 61 (F/F Morrison, M), Tanker 6 (F/F Wells, M), and Ambulance 68 (EMT Mclelland) arrived on location with smoke showing. Command was established by Chief 6C while the crew from Engine 61 advanced the rear 400' attack line and found a defective heating unit on fire in the rear of the church. The crew from Engine 61 quickly extinguished the fire while the crew from Squad 6 performed Utility Control and Ventilation. Engine 21's crew (Chief 2, Billings) checked the basement for extensions, proving negative. Command held Company 6 and Engine 21 on the scene until 0808 hours.

Interior: F/F Morrison

 
Units: Chief 6C, Engine 61, Squad 6, Tanker 6, Ambulance 68
 
Mutual Aid: EVERY department in the county pulled at least one-piece of apparatus