November 2024

The Wakefield Fire Department responded to 453 emergency incidents during the month of November 2024 including 50 box alarms and 403 still alarms. The department responded to fifteen requests for mutual aid during November, four times each to Saugus and Stoneham, twice to North Reading, and one response each to Chelsea, Lynnfield, Melrose, Reading and Woburn. The department received mutual aid twenty-five times during November, four times from Saugus, three times each from Lynnfield, Melrose, North Reading, Reading and Stoneham, twice from Woburn and once each from Malden, Medford, Middleton and Wilmington. As drought conditions worsened, the department continued to respond to other communities to assist fire departments with extensive brush fires during the first half of November. Department crews responded to Breakheart Reservation between November 2 and 9 to assist the Saugus and State DCR firefighters contain two large fires. A crew from Engine 1 under the command of Lieutenant Cliff Silva assisted the Reading Fire Department at the scene of a 3-alarm brush fire in the vicinity of 12 Jere Road during the afternoon of November 8. The same crew was called out again only a few hours later to respond to a multiple alarm brush fire at 3 Dogwood Lane in North Reading. They returned to Wakefield at midnight only to be called back to the same fire in North Reading, where they assisted in suppression operations for another 15 hours on November 9. A crew from Engine 2 under Lieutenant Joseph Albert assisted the Melrose Fire Department at the scene of a structure fire at 83 Boardman Avenue during the evening of November 8. Firefighters from Engine 2 under the command of Lieutenant Steve Bivens assisted the Stoneham Fire Department at the scene of a 2-alarm fire at 105 Marble Street during the afternoon of November 14. A crew from Engine 2 also led by Lieutenant Steve Bivens responded to a 2-alarm fire at 36 Gould Street in Stoneham during the morning of November 15. A crew from Engine 1 led by Lieutenant Gerald Sancinito covered a vacant Lynnfield Fire Station while their firefighters were tied up at an incident during the late morning of November 17. A crew from Engine 2 under Lieutenant Michael Long covered a vacant Chelsea fire station during a 9-alarm fire at a large mill building requiring a response from dozens of fire departments on November 18. A crew led by Lieutenant Erik Cole covered a Woburn fire station during a 2-alarm fire in that city on the evening of November 29. A crew from Engine 2 covered Stoneham Fire Headquarters during a structure fire in that community during the morning of November 30.

Firefighters under the command of Captain John Walsh responded to a reported house fire at 8 Wakefield Avenue at 12:47 P.M. on Sunday, November 17. They arrived to an active fire extending inside an exterior wall in the right rear corner of the 7-unit apartment building and a light smoke condition inside the building. Firefighters with the help of several police officers evacuated the building occupants still inside. All visible fire inside was knocked down quickly but it soon became apparent that the fire had extended inside concealed spaces present in the outside wall all the way to the roof eaves. A second alarm was ordered at 12:56 P.M. bringing engines from Reading, Stoneham and Melrose to the scene along with a North Reading Ladder truck. Multiple layers of wall plaster and paneling made accessing the hidden fire difficult, resulting in a third alarm being ordered by Chief Sullivan at 1:32 P.M. for additional personnel. The fire was brought under control at approximately 2:30 P.M. Fire damage was primarily contained to the right rear corner of the building on all floors. The remainder of the structure suffered various degrees of smoke, heat and water damage. Twelve building occupants were displaced until repairs can be made to the building. The State Fire Marshal’s Office assisted local police and fire investigators in determining a cause for the fire, which was found to be the careless disposal of smoking materials outside the building. There were no injuries to either building occupants or firefighters during the fire. Wakefield Fire Headquarters was covered by a Malden Engine and a Ladder as well as a Wilmington Engine during this incident.

Eight days later the department was called to another serious structure fire on November 25 at 9:54 A.M. at 241 Pleasant Street. The department’s Fire Prevention Officer, Captain David Shinney, spotted heavy smoke coming from the single-family home and quickly reported the fire by radio. Captain Shinney immediately stopped and evacuated the occupants from the home. Firefighters under the command of Captain Randy Hudson quickly arrived and discovered a large, rapidly spreading fire inside the attic. The attic space had no interior entrance making access difficult. A second alarm was ordered by Captain Hudson within several minutes, bringing in firefighters from Melrose, North Reading, Reading and Stoneham. Several simultaneous calls including a potential propane leak at the Northeast Regional Vocational School caused a delay with some of the mutual aid response. The attic space was opened up at both ends of the house and the second-floor ceiling was pulled, allowing firefighters access to the attic area. The fire was completely extinguished by noon. Fire Companies from Saugus, Lynnfield and Woburn covered fire headquarters during the fire. State and local fire officials investigated and determined that the fire started accidentally inside a wall in the second-floor bathroom. The exact cause of the fire remains accidental but undetermined. Four occupants inside the home will be displaced for an extended period. There were no injuries to the occupants of the home or responding firefighters. A pet dog was located during the fire and safely evacuated from the home.

Little rain and the resulting low humidity level for forest surface fuels resulted in the outbreak of numerous brush fires throughout the state. Activity started during the last week of October with the department responding mutual aid to Middleton to assist with a large brush fire that eventually consumed hundreds of acres of brush. The department also assisted the Saugus Fire Department at a brush fire of more than 25 acres behind the Cedar Glen Golf Course adjacent to Breakheart Reservation. in the first of what was to be three large fires burning in the Reservation for the next several weeks. Mutual aid resources were stretched to the limit as local and state firefighters scrambled to contain fires in numerous areas well into the first half of November. Two additional fires of at least 20 acres started in Breakheart, one following the Fern Trail up to the shores of the lower lake and the other starting near the power lines near Farm Street, the Spruce Path and the Ridge Trail. A combination of Wakefield, Saugus, Medford and state firefighters from both Massachusetts and New Hampshire worked together to keep these fires contained. All of the fires were man-made, a combination of careless smoking, illegal campfires and unfortunately, intentionally set fires. The Department assisted the Middleton, North Reading and Reading fire department at several large brush fires that threatened numerous homes during November. The fires did not subside until the region started to get rain towards the end of the month.

Wakefield Firefighter Joseph Tropeano graduated from the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy Recruit Training Class 325 on November 18 after completing a 50-day training program. Tropeano is a Staff Sergeant with the Massachusetts Air National Guard Reserve, serving since 2019. He was assigned to Group 3 under Captain John Walsh. The department welcomes Firefighter Tropeano and wishes him a long and productive career in the fire service.

Department members participated in Emergency Medical Technician training classes as part of their annual continuing education requirements. The department continued its ongoing in-service safety inspections and pre-planning tours of various businesses in town during November. All nursing homes, schools, hotels, boarding homes and assisted living facilities received their quarterly inspection during November. All groups participated in training evolutions regarding elevator emergencies, brush fires, pumper training and ice/water rescues. The department proudly participated in the town’s Veteran’s Day ceremony held at the Galvin Middle School on November 11.

Incident Response Report

Fire Prevention Report