January 2022

The Wakefield Fire Department responded to 355 emergency incidents during the month of January 2022 including 33 box alarms and 322 still alarms. The department responded to seven requests for mutual aid during January, five times to Melrose and once each to Danvers and Stoneham. The department received mutual aid five times during the month of January, four times from Reading and once from Stoneham. A crew from Engine 2 led by Lieutenant Joseph Albert covered a vacant Malden fire station during a three-alarm fire in that city during the evening of January 10. Lieutenant Michael Long led another crew from Engine 2 that covered Stoneham fire headquarters during a fire in that community during the early evening of January 28.

Captain Paul Pronco and Lieutenant Steven Bivens responded as part of the Northeast Massachusetts Technical Rescue Team to assist the Danvers Fire Department with the recovery of a deceased male from a confined space on the grounds of the former Danvers State Hospital. The man had gone missing and was found by Danvers firefighters at the bottom of a smoke stack in the hospital’s former power plant. Members of the team assembled and removed the man from the property via an access door at the bottom of the smoke stack.

The department responded to two serious motor vehicle accidents during January. The first accident occurred on January 8. Fire crews from Reading and Wakefield worked together to free an 18-year old occupant of a vehicle who was involved in a two-car crash on Route 95 southbound between exits 57 and 58. Crews used the Jaws of Life to remove a door and free the operator’s legs. The patient was transported to Lahey Burlington with serious injuries. The second accident occurred on January 19 and involved a pedestrian struck by a motor vehicle in front of 188 Main Street. A crew from Engine 2 was dispatched to the accident while returning from a previous call. They arrived within two minutes to find an elderly woman with serious injuries laying in the road being attended to by police and bystanders. Paramedics arrived shortly after firefighters and a joint decision was made to request a helicopter from Medflight. Engine 1 was dispatched to the landing zone at Veteran’s Field to meet the helicopter while the patient was treated and loaded into an ambulance for transport to the landing zone. The patient was then flown to Brigham and Women’s Hospital with life-threatening injuries. Sadly, the patient did not survive her serious injuries.

Wakefield was struck by a serious snow storm including blizzard conditions on January 29 that started during the early morning hours and extended well into the night. The storm dropped more than 22 inches of snow during a 16-hour period with drifts piling up considerably higher in spots. The department added additional staffing during the storm and responded to approximately a dozen calls, many of them medical emergencies, during the storm. There were no major power outages despite the high winds and the DPW did a terrific job keeping the roads passable for emergency vehicles. All departments including Police, Fire, DPW and Light Department personnel worked together to respond to emergencies and keep the citizens of Wakefield safe.

Wakefield Firefighter Daniel P. Sullivan retired from the Wakefield Fire Department on January 5, 2022 after serving the department for almost 35 years. Sullivan, a well-respected and knowledgeable firefighter, received several department commendations during his career with the Wakefield Fire Department. He was credited with saving one resident and knocking down a kitchen fire on Auburn Street in Wakefield on October 8, 2007. Sullivan received a second commendation on August 23, 2009 for his actions in assisting a choking male patron at the Chili’s Restaurant in Dedham. He was credited by the Dedham Fire Department with saving the life of this man. Sullivan was appointed a permanent firefighter to the Wakefield Fire Department on January 27, 1987. He was a certified Emergency Medical Technician and was the senior firefighter in the department, assigned to Group 3 under Captain John Walsh, at the time of his retirement. The department wishes Danny a long and healthy retirement with his wife Jennifer and his three children, Stephanie, Jessica and Joseph.

The department continues to be impacted by the recent surge in Covid-19 infections, responding to approximately 77 calls in January where patients with Covid-19 were either confirmed or suspected to be present. Covid-19 involved responses started to decline during the last two weeks of the month, possibly indicating that the most recent surge is slowing down. The department is well equipped with skilled Emergency Medical Technicians equipped with personal protective equipment to assist anyone in need of medical attention. Members of the public afflicted by non-Covid-19 emergencies should not hesitate to call for emergency medical services as local hospitals are well equipped to keep them safe from contracting the virus.

All department members participated in Emergency Medical Technician training classes during January provided free to the department by Cataldo Ambulance. Several groups continued to practice ice and water rescue procedures in January. All duty shifts conducted walk-throughs of the new development at 168 Albion Street in January. All department members had their self-contained breathing apparatus face pieces fit-tested during January. The department took delivery of a set of clothes washers and dryers for each station to be used to clean uniforms and clothing separate from firefighting gear, which are cleaned regularly in specialized equipment. This equipment was purchased thru funding from Wakefield’s Emergency Management Department. The department was awarded more than $13,000 from a Fiscal Year 2022 Firefighter Safety Equipment Grant. This money will be used to purchase protective gear for new firefighters and a battery-operated hydraulic rescue tool. This grant is part of a five-year funding plan to purchase equipment for local fire departments.

Incident Response Report

Fire Prevention Report