February 2015

The Wakefield Fire Department responded to 369 emergency incidents during the month of February including 51 box alarms and 318 still alarms.

The department responded to eight requests for mutual aid during February, three times to Stoneham and once to Melrose, Reading, Revere, Lynnfield and Stoneham. It received mutual aid ten times during February, five times from Stoneham, two times from Reading, two times from Melrose and once from Lynnfield. Lieutenant Robert Taggart and a crew from Engine 2 assisted the Revere Fire department at the scene of a three-alarm fire at 400 Broadway in that city on the morning of February 6. Another crew from Engine 2 led by Lieutenant Taggart covered the Stoneham Fire Headquarters during a fire on the evening of February 14. Captain Paul Pronco and Lieutenant Michael Long responded along with other members of the Essex County Technical Rescue Team to the Town of Andover after a barn collapsed and trapped several horses. The team worked quickly to free three horses trapped inside the building. Wakefield Engine 2 covered Stoneham Fire headquarters during the afternoon of February 26 and the evening of February 28.

February proved to be an extremely stormy month, with three additional winter storms hitting the area on February 2-3, 8-9 and 14-16, depositing several feet of additional snow on the town. The storm of February 14-16 was particularly severe, with high winds and heavy snowfall creating at times nearly white-out conditions. Wakefield’s streets became progressively narrower as the snow piled up and the department fought a losing battle to locate and keep fire hydrants clear and accessible. February saw an increase in responses for water problems as ice dams formed on roofs. Falling snow and ice damaged several gas meters causing responses for gas leaks. A motor vehicle struck a buried gas meter behind 18 Albion Street on the morning of February 12, causing gas to accumulate under buried snow and enter several properties on Albion and Foster Streets. Crews from the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department responded quickly, isolating the leak and shutting it down while firefighters ventilated several buildings in the area. High snow banks and narrow streets contributed to the 33 motor vehicle accidents that the department responded to during February.

The department responded to a total of eight structure fires during the month of February.

Firefighters under the command of Captain Randy Hudson responded to a fire in a 14,000 volt transformer located at the Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department (WMGLD) substation located at 5 Wakefield Avenue during the afternoon of February 4. The fire started when the transformer malfunctioned and exploded igniting its transformer oil. Firefighters contained the fire until foam supplied by Lynnfield Fire could be deployed to extinguish the blaze. The fire was contained to the transformer and a nearby tree, however, some transformer oil was released onto the property and an adjoining residence. An environmental contract was hired by the WMGLD to supervise the clean-up operations. There were no injuries and minimal power outages as a result of the fire.

The same group of firefighters under Captain Hudson were called to a structure fire at 403 Vernon Street on the morning of February 11. The homeowner returned home to find the residence full of smoke and called 911. The fire was eventually traced to a basement area where it was quickly extinguished. The cause of this fire was an electrical malfunction in the basement room where the fire was discovered. There were no injuries and the family was able to remain in the residence.

An individual thawing frozen pipes with a torch at 124 Greenwood Street during the afternoon of February 16 ignited a fire in the flooring underneath a porch at that residence. The fire was quickly controlled by firefighters working under Captain Richard Smith with no further damage to the property.

The same group of firefighters under Captain Smith responded to two structure fires on February 16. The first fire occurred during the afternoon of February 18 when a homeowner thawing pipes with a torch or heat gun ignited a fire inside a concealed wall space. Firefighters opened up the basement ceiling and wall spaces inside a first floor apartment to make sure that the fire was completely extinguished. There were no injuries as a result of this fire and none of the residents in the four family apartment building were displaced. The second fire on February 16 occurred on the roof of brother’s restaurant at 404 Main Street when the gas line to a roof-top heating unit fractured and ignited natural gas. The fire was quickly contained to the heating unit and extinguished. The restaurant was closed for the remainder of the evening but was open for business for breakfast customers early the next day.

Firefighters under Captain Smith were again called upon during the early morning of February 23 when a fire of electrical origin started in a construction office at 94 Renwick Road. The fire was quickly contained to the room of origin and no one was injured during the incident.

Crews under Captain Randy Hudson battled a stubborn chimney fire at 30 Park Avenue during the afternoon of February 26. Firefighters used dry chemical “bombs”, chimney chains and a specialized chimney fire nozzle to extinguish the flames. Fortunately, the fire never extended outside of the chimney. There were no injuries and the homeowners were able to remain in the residence.

The final structure fire for the month occurred during the evening of February 27 when firefighters under the command of Captain Paul Pronco responded to 234 Lowell Street to extinguish another chimney fire. This fire proved to be as stubborn as the fire the previous day requiring crews to deploy more dry chemical bags and the chimney chains to extinguish it. This fire was contained to the chimney area. There were no injuries as a result of the fire however the homeowner was displaced for a period while repairs were made to the wood stove, which was serving as the primary means of heating this residence.

A group of Wakefield cub scouts visited Wakefield Fire Headquarters during the evening of February 24. All department members were recertified in CPR as well as the use of semi-automatic defibrillators during the month of February.

Incident Response Report

Fire Prevention Report