June 2015

The Wakefield Fire Department responded to 312 emergency incidents during the month of June including 41 box alarms and 271 still alarms.

The department responded to six requests for mutual aid during June, three times to Melrose, and once each to Lynnfield, Reading and Weston. It received mutual aid two times during June from Stoneham. A crew from Engine 1 led by Lieutenant Lou Sardella covered Reading Fire Headquarters during a structure fire in that community during the afternoon of June 5. Lieutenant Phil Preston and a crew from Engine 1 covered the Lynnfield south station during a fire in that community on June 24. Firefighters under the command of Lieutenant Brian Purcell responded to a 2-alarm fire on Warren Street in Melrose during the afternoon of June 29. Firefighter Daniel Marsinelli was activated along with other members of the District 2 Hazardous Materials Response Team to an incident at the State Police barracks at 668 South Avenue in Weston. The incident, involving the disposal of some contaminated medical materials, was quickly resolved. Firefighter Marsinelli’s participation in the regional hazardous materials team is completely funded by the State of Massachusetts.

Wakefield firefighters under the command of Captain Randy Hudson responded to a dryer fire at 8 Webster Road during the morning of June 26. The fire was quickly contained to the dryer and was caused by a build-up of lint within the appliance. There were no injuries as a result of this fire.

The department received delivery of 23 new sets of breathing apparatus as part of a Department of Homeland Security Assistance to Firefighter’s Grant (AFG) totaling more than $190,000. This equipment will be unpacked and will be placed into service after the department has been trained in its use. AFG grants are applied for annually with this particular grant funding approximately 90% of the cost of the new breathing apparatus.

All department groups continue their annual inspections and surveys of businesses located in their assigned districts. The department conducted fire drills in the Wakefield school system during the month of June. All groups conducted received excellent training on pumping operations from representatives of Fire Department Support Services LLC during the month of June. This training utilized a towed self-contained unit capable of duplicating different pumping scenarios in an individual hands-on series of evolutions designed to hone their skills as fire department pump operators. The department continued to conduct drills with its two rescue boats. The department’s inventory of fire hose was pressure tested during the month of June. All four duty groups received emergency medical training in protocols involving DNR and MOLST orders for certain patients they may encounter and on procedures involving hemorrhage control.

Wakefield firefighters brought fire trucks to the Woodville School on June 3, the Dolbeare School on June 9, and the Doyle School on June 11 to wash them with the Kindergarten and pre-school children at those respective schools. Ladder 1 visited the Kindercare Children’s Center at 607 North Avenue on June 15 much to the delight of the children at that facility.

Incident Response Report

Fire Prevention Report