July 2022

The Wakefield Fire Department responded to 376 emergency incidents during the month of July including 26 box alarms and 350 still alarms. The department responded to seven requests for mutual aid during July, five times to Stoneham and once each to Lynnfield and Reading. The department received mutual aid seven times during the month of July, four times from Reading and three times from Lynnfield. Firefighters from Engine 1 covered a vacant Lynnfield fire station on the evening of July 3 while that department was tied up at an incident. A crew from Engine 1 under the command of Lieutenant Erik Cole assisted the Reading Fire Department at the scene of a 3-alarm fire at 35 Colonial Drive during the evening of July 5. Crews from Wakefield Engine 2 covered Stoneham Fire Headquarters on July 8, 22, 24 and 26 as firefighters in that community battled extensive brush fires.

Quick work by firefighters kept an outside trash fire from extending into a single-family residence at 10 Baldwin Road during the early morning of July 6. Fire crews led by Captain John Walsh arrived shortly before 4 A.M. to find a fire in a trash barrel extending to a fence and the exterior vinyl siding of the home. The fire was quickly knocked down and contained to the area of origin. There was no damage to the interior of the residence and the occupants were able to remain in the home. The cause of the fire was investigated and determined to be the careless disposal of charcoal briquettes that had not been given sufficient time to cool before being disposed of. There were no injuries to either firefighters or building occupants as a result of this fire.

The department responded to several serious motor vehicle accidents during the month of July.

Firefighters under the command of Captain John Walsh responded to a report of a serious accident at 131 Vernon Street during the afternoon of July 5. Firefighters arrived to find four teenagers with serious injuries after their vehicle collided with a tree at that location. Two of the occupants managed to exit the vehicle but the driver and the passenger behind him were trapped inside the vehicle. Firefighters used hydraulic rescue tools to remove the roof and two driver side doors from the vehicle. The dashboard was also pushed back away from the driver to free him. The driver was transported by Medflight helicopter to Massachusetts General Hospital. Two of the passengers were transported by ambulance to Lahey Burlington while the third passenger was transported by ambulance to Massachusetts General Hospital. Paramedic crews from the Lynnfield and Reading Fire Departments assisted Wakefield firefighters and Cataldo paramedics in the treatment and transport of the occupants.

The same crew of firefighters led by Captain Walsh responded to a second motor vehicle accident less than five hours later at 61 Hopkins Street. Crews arrived at 7:24 P.M. to find a single vehicle on its roof leaking gasoline. The sole occupant of the vehicle was trapped and had to be freed with a hydraulic rescue tool. The 60-year old female was then transported to Lahey Burlington for follow-up treatment. The Reading Fire Department’s ladder truck assisted department members at the scene of the accident.

A third serious accident occurred just before midnight on July 19. Firefighters, again led by Captain John Walsh, responded to a single car crash at 377 Vernon Street involving two teenage occupants. The vehicle struck a tree at a high rate of speed causing serious injuries to both occupants. A Reading Fire Department paramedic unit responded to the scene to assist Cataldo paramedics. Both occupants were removed from the vehicle without the need for hydraulic rescue tools and were transported to Lahey Hospital in Burlington.

The final serious car accident in July occurred just after 3 P.M. on July 26 on North Avenue in the vicinity of the Galvin Middle School. Firefighters under the command of Captain Brian Purcell found a single passenger vehicle that had lost control and struck a telephone pole. The resulting collision started a fire in the engine compartment of the vehicle, which was quickly extinguished. The lone occupant of the vehicle, a 51-year old woman, became unresponsive shortly after being removed from the vehicle. Firefighters initiated CPR on the woman and she was transported to Lahey Burlington. Sadly, the woman died as a result of her injuries.

All groups attended medical classes as part of their Emergency Medical Technician certificates. Department members continued their annual in-service business inspections of commercial properties. Training by several groups was also conducted during July at Crystal Lake at the Wakefield DPW water department pumping station. The training involved the proper procedures to be used while drafting water from a lake or pond. This evolution was combined with a pumping drill utilizing heavy stream appliances including deck guns and an aerial ladder pipe. The department air compressor providing air for its self-contained breathing apparatus was serviced and calibrated during July.

Incident Response Report

Fire Prevention Report