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Incident Report: Chesterfield Co. (VA) firefighters battle fully-engulfed home
Article by Becky Robinette Wright
Photos by Lieutenant Jimmy Trice of Chesterfield County (VA) Fire and EMS
Chesterfield County (VA) Fire and EMS members were dispatched to a structure fire at Gamblers Cove on January 20, 2007, at 1130 hours. The first on-scene crews discovered a two-story, 2,000-square-foot home fully involved. Heavy fire was visible, and the front of the house was already gone.
Three engines, one aerial ladder truck, and one medic unit responded initially. Additional units included two engines, a tanker and a brush truck.
Residents had self-evacuated. A long delay in calling 911 enabled the fire to become quickly well-established. Residents had attempted to extinguish the fire, but the fire grew more and more out of control until they finally decided to call for help, but discovered the phone lines had burned through and the phones were dead. They hiked to a neighbor's home to call for help.
Firefighters had to drive apparatus down a narrow, 2,500-foot driveway that was only two inches wider than the units. The aerial ladder tires covered the whole driveway with no room to spare.
Live wires were down and strewn about with several about 10 feet away from the house; firefighters couldn't enter this area until the electric company had cut the power.
Exposures included a woodshop near the house that was filled with chemicals as well as two more houses farther away and a 1,000-gallon propane tank. Firefighters hit the tank with water to keep it cool and prevent an explosion. The wind was blowing away from the fire structure's exposures but toward the propane tank.
Water supply was a challenge. The home was located on a river, but with vehicles in the driveway and the home fully involved crews couldn't get to the boat ramp behind the house to draft water from the river.
Engine 18 laid 600 feet of five-inch supply line. A special coupling was also attached and an additional supply line of three-inch was laid for a total of 2,500 feet.
Enon, Dutch Gap and River's Bend stations responded to the incident. The Tactical Safety Officer was Lieutenant Jimmy Trice. Battalion Two had command.
A dog died in the fire. The animal had been removed from the home, but it panicked and ran back into the structure. No civilian or firefighter injuries were reported.
Minor equipment damage was reported, including a broken shovel and a broken pike pole. Firefighters had an extremely difficult time exiting the apparatus, which had to be turned around first.
The fire is under investigation.
Lessons Learned
- Preplanning made all the difference. All stations responding to this incident were familiar with the challenging scenario before the fire occurred. Personnel had visited the property previously to become familiar with the area in case such an emergency arose.
- All wires were assumed to be live until electrical crews arrived on the scene and shut down the power. Being safety conscious and erring on the side of caution helps prevent firefighter death and injuries.
- Chesterfield County (VA) Fire and EMS has a policy of patrolling its districts to become familiar with local structures and look for potential hazards, difficult-to-access areas, and other situations that could significantly affect a future emergency response so it can be prepared for an emergency.
