Camden Fire Department — Fire Watch Magazine, 1997

Members of the Camden Fire Department over the years been represented by different union and fraternal organizations, including the International Association of Fire Fighters, the Brotherhood of Professional Fire Fighters, the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters, and the Society of Camden Latino Fire Fighters.

Local 788 also published FIRE WATCH MAGAZINE in the 1990s, which detailed the activities of the Department in its annual issues. With photo and articles by Bob Bartosz, Joel Bain, Frank Saia and others, the magazines are a real treasure. It is an honor to be able to present these accounts of the activities of Camden's fire fighters here, and I hope to be able to reproduce several issues on the website in time.

Phil Cohen
Camden NJ

Administration

Chief of Department — Kenneth L. Penn, Feb. 1, 1966
Deputy Chief — Personnel Francis K. Stinger, Dec. 16, 1974
Deputy Chief — Operations B. James Nash, Dec. 31, 1974

Administrative Staff

Executive Officer — Battalion Chief Joseph Marini, May 21, 1976
Firefighter Ronald A. Marcianna, Sept. 5, 1973

Secretarial Staff

Antionette Smith • Lorraine Bumbrey • Blanca Aponte

Training Academy

Principal Training Officer — Captain Paul C. Speas, Dec. 10, 1976
Assistant Training Officer — Captain Michael Harper, Mar. 2, 1987

Office of the Fire Marshal

Chief Fire Marshal — Herbert C. Leary, Aug. 2, 1965
Ass’t Chief Fire Marshal — Stephen R. Bird, Dec. 16, 1974
Fire Inspector — Parris R. Branch, July 15, 1968
Fire Inspector — Antonio S. Gonzales, Feb. 6, 1985
Fire Inspector — Lewis Edwards, May 9, 1994

Fire Apparatus Motor Maintenance Division

Chief Apparatus Officer — George Kifferly, June 12, 1970
Mechanic — Allen Kozuhowski • Mechanic — Edward Mozdzen
Mechanic — Keith Smith

Fire Department Maintenance

Gary Still • Vincente Maldonado

Suppression Force — Battalion Chiefs (13)

Captains (53)

Fire Fighters (140)

Assistant Chief Fire Marshal

John Mills — May 27, 1968

Battalion Chiefs

Captains

Office of the Fire Marshal

Firefighters

Camden NJ Fire Rescue has the reputation of being one of the busiest in the City, answering all building fires and miscellaneous HazMat operations and rescue calls. On April 14, 1997, Rescue 1 started their routine day going to work on a one alarm dwelling fire in the morning just after the noon day lunch they were called for a working building fire in a two story vacant in the East Camden section of the City. After 45 minutes of duty they were then dispatched to a dwelling fire in the South Camden section, this turned out to be a small kitchen fire that Rescue 1 quickly handled.

As Rescue 1 was returned to their quarters, the tone alarms went out for Engine Company 10, Rescue 1, and Battalion 3 (Chief Joe Gallagher) for a call to assist Police on the 1300 block of Fairview Street. When the Companies arrived they found two car loads of Police Officers trying to get into a parked car that was locked. Inside the car was a one year old little girl who was accidentally locked in the car by her mother. After persistent efforts the police were unable to gain access and Rescue 1 was called.

After several different methods were attempted, the old unbent coat hanger method proved to be the best. Fire Fighters Joel Bain and Eddie Glassman were able to release the door lock with the coat hanger.

The rescue operation consisted of 9 fire fighters, 6 police officers and a crowd of 30 onlookers. All were relieved when the door was finally opened, one year old Alexus Lindsey sat patiently smiling in her car seat. Fire Fighter Jesse Flax was more than happy to lean in and remove her from the car seat.

Just another day for Rescue 1.

The Camden Fire Department consists of eight engine companies, three ladder companies, one heavy rescue company, one Fire Boat, and is divided into three battalions. The City of Camden is approximately 10 square miles with a day-time population of approximately 95,000. A full first alarm assignment consists of three engine companies, one ladder company, the heavy rescue, and one battalion chief. A high-hazard response (which would include schools, hospitals, and high-rise buildings) consists of three engines, two ladders, the rescue, and two battalion chiefs. Most fire alarm activations will receive one engine, one ladder, and one battalion chief. Motor vehicle accident responses receive one engine, one rescue, and one battalion chief. A motor vehicle accident on a divided highway receives an additional engine company to cover the opposite side of the roadway and an accident on the Benjamin Franklin Bridge would receive a ladder company in addition to a divided highway response. Fires such as autos, trash, dumpsters, and grass receive a dispatch of one engine company. Public assists, police or EMS assists are just a few service assignments that receive usually a single ladder company response.

The Camden Fire Department is the busiest fire department in New Jersey per capita and is ranked the third busiest in total volume trailing only Newark and Jersey City which are more than twice the size of Camden. The Uniformed Fire Suppression Force of the Camden Fire Department works a 42 hour work week in which each member works a 24 hour continuous tour of duty then receiving 72 hours off duty. Their shift starts at 0700 hours each morning. Each apparatus in every firehouse is staffed with a fire captain and three firefighters 24 hours a day every day of the year without exception. All alarms of fire are received over the Department fire radio which is transmitted from the Camden County Fire Communications Center in Lindenwold, NJ on a VHF frequency of 153.770 mHz.

Company Run Totals for 1995 and 1996

In 1994 The Camden Fire Department acquired a former U.S. Coast Guard “Port and Waterways Boat” (PWB). This boat went through a massive engine rebuild by the fire department apparatus shop and repainted locally by Tiedeken Brothers in South Camden. The pilot house was totally redone by fire department personnel normally assigned to Engine Co. 1.

Rather than assigning a U.S. Coast Guard number, the boat was given the name of William Ables to honor the first fire chief of Camden Fire Department.

The William Ables measures 33’ and 4” with a beam of 11’ and 9.” It is powered by two 250 hp Caterpillar 3208 diesel engines. A third engine, a 371 Detroit Diesel, is used to power a 500 G.P.M. Fire pump. The William Ables is capable of speeds up to 20 knots (approximately 22 MPH).

Saturday morning May 17, 1997 started out as a typical mild day. A local trucking firm has just dropped off a huge industrial trash dumpster at a construction site along Camden’s Admiral Wilson Blvd. This is one of the main arteries through the City of Camden that connects to the Benjamin Franklin Bridge to Philadelphia. On any weekday morning this highway is clogged with thousands of cars, this morning the traffic was very light. The truck driver was traveling eastbound on the Boulevard with its huge lifting device still raised in the air. What was about to happen was to be known as the miracle on Wilson Boulevard.

The truck was approaching the huge 16th Street Foot Bridge, that bridge extends 130 feet across over 8 lanes and has a clearance of 13 feet 7 inches. The truck’s boom struck the top of the bridge causing it to come off its mounting and toppled it down across the four lane highway. Traveling along side of the truck at the same time was a woman with four small children in the car. On the other side was a 19 year old man from Philadelphia traveling alone in his 1991 Acura Legend. The impact of the collision blew all the windows out of the truck and ripped the rear of the truck off its frame. The women with the children in the car was hit with the debris flying from the truck and just missed the collapse of the bridge on top of the car. The driver of the other car was not so lucky, the bridge came down on top of his car crushing it down to the dashboard. The roof of the car struck him on the head forcing him downward, while his foot continued to push down on the accelerator. His car was now flattened and raced out of control away from the women and small children. They were able to stop the car approximately 1/4 mile down the road after it slowed to about 5 MPH.

At 11:53 a.m. the 911 Center began receiving dozens of calls about a serious bridge collapse with people trapped. Camden County Fire Radio Center dispatched Engine Co. 6 and Battalion 1 to go eastbound. Engine Co. 9, Rescue 1 and Battalion 2 were dispatched westbound on Wilson blvd. As Battalion 1 and Engine 6 approached the entrance to Admiral Wilson Boulevard they were met with a huge traffic back-up and could see the bridge collapsed in the distance. Battalion 1 immediately ordered an additional Engine Co. to be dispatched, County Radio sent Engine Co. 7 down the highway in the opposite direction.

At this time various Camden EMS and Medic Units were also being dispatched. What everybody did not know at the time was that there was no one trapped at the collapse bridge site and that all the activity of the rescue operations would be taking place 1/4 of a mile from the accident scene. As Engine 7 now entered the deserted highway they came across the collapsed car with the trapped victim. Rescue 1 and Engine Co. 9 and Battalion 2 were now arriving on the opposite side of the highway. The EMS Squads were unable to reach the victim to access his condition so Captain Paul Escher of Rescue 1 immediately had members place two jaws of life into service. The victim appeared to be unconscious at the time. Camden fire fighters removed the roof of the auto allowing medics to treat the injured victim who was going in and out of consciousness. Other fire fighters were now at the second auto finding only four crying children and mother who were not injured. And as one fire fighter put it, “lucky to be alive.”

With the main highway now being completely shutdown, traffic was blocked for miles in all directions. NJ State Highway Department arrived a few hours later with huge cranes to lift the 190 ton bridge off the highway. Workers using cutting torches worked into the evening to dismantle the bridge. Traffic on the highway was now open some 12 hours later.

The other odd part of this story was that TV, radio and newspapers gave the live reports all day long about the accident but not one station mentioned the major part that fire fighters and EMS personnel played. They acted professionally and saved a young man’s life. What made the news focused on what a mess traffic was and how wonderfully the State Highway workers did in removing the wrecked bridge.

Camden New Jersey Fire Department had a busy night as the Little Devils came out on Halloween Eve. The evening started out at 7:07 p.m. with a working house fire at 1042 North 19th Street in the Cramer Hill Section of the city. All hands went to work and had the blaze under control in about 20 minutes.

Just as this blaze was being placed under control, Units were dispatched to 112 Stewart Street for an auto junkyard fire. Responding units could see heavy smoke and fire in the sky as some half dozen autos were involved. City firefighters were able to stop the spread of the blaze before any of the exposed homes could be involved.

At 7:43 p.m. Engine Company 6 was dispatched for a trash fire in the 500 block of Washington Street. As Engine Company 6 was approaching they were confronted with heavy fire coming from a three story vacant at 574 Washington Street. The box was filled out bringing additional Engine Companies 3 and 10, Ladder Company 1, Squad Company 2 (manpower) and Battalion Chief 1. The fire had now spread to an adjoining three story vacant. Battalion Chief Robert Basile had requested a special call for a Tower Ladder with all of Camden’s Tower Ladders being tied up at other working fires. Fire Radio dispatched Station 11-4 from Pennsauken Fire Department for their Tower Ladder. The blaze has now heavily involved the two buildings with heavy fire coming out all of the windows and through the roof. Camden’s Ladder Company 1 was now using its Ladder Pipe, Ground Companies were using heavy Master Streams and hand lines as Pennsauken’s Tower ladder was now being put to work in the front of the building. It would take fire-fighters almost an hour to bring this blaze under control.

Meanwhile, various trash, rubbish and car fires were coming in. With most of the city companies now tied up, Mutual Aid Companies from the County were being dispatched into the city. Many being dispatched directly to a fire call before they reached their fire house coverup.

At 8:33 p.m. a call was received for a dwelling fire at 1773 Norris Street in the South Camden section of the city. In this area most of the homes are two story brick rows. Camden City Fire Marshal Herb Leary (FM 1) was the first to arrive, he reported heavy fire coming from a two story dwelling in the middle of a row of ten occupied dwellings. The first arriving Company was Engine Company 108, Collingswood, NJ. They were immediately ordered to use a 2 1/2 inch attack line to make the initial knockdown. And within 5 minutes the heavy fire was completely darkened down as other arriving units came to their assistance. The fire was confined to the one vacant dwelling. Occupied homes on both sides received smoke damage but another job well done.

As FM 1 was leaving this fire, a call was received at 8:56 p.m. for a dwelling fire at 7th and Mt. Vernon Streets. Engine Company 107 of Brooklawn, NJ, Fire Co., Camden City Engine Company 8, Ladder Company 102 of Gloucester City Fire Dept., Camden’s Squad 2 and Battalion Chief 5 were dispatched. As FM 1 was approaching the fire grounds he could see heavy fire coming from a pair of two story vacant frame dwellings. As the first two companies were now arriving and leading off with their heaviest water line, all hands were now working to try to stop the spread of the fire from some nearby vacant properties. Camden’s Deputy Fire Chief Skip Stinger was now arriving on the fire grounds, as he was walking down the street civilians were now pointing to look behind him. Down the next block, there were now flames towering out of a heavily involved two-story twin vacant dwelling some hundred yards from the now working fire. An immediate call was placed for a full assignment to the 600 block of Mt. Vernon Street.

At 9:03 p.m. Engine Companies 7, 9, Ladder Company 3, Squad 1 and Battalion Chief 3 were dispatched to the fire at 618 Mt. Vernon Street. Chief Stinger along with Fire Marshal Leary and County Fire dispatcher Lieutenant Alex Hendry, who was on the scene, were quickly put to work manning the first water line, trying to cut the fire off from a nearby exposure. But the flames had already involved the two buildings and were now jumped the alley way and the third vacant building was now heavily involved.

Two fires, one at the 700 block and the other at the 600 block of Mt. Vernon, continued to burn out of control. Firefighters then noticed heavy smoke conditions coming from the 500 block of Mt. Vernon Street. At 9:12 p.m. Companies were dispatched to the 500 block of Mt. Vernon just off Broadway. Engine Co. 106 of Westmont, NJ, Fire Department, Engine Co. 203 from Barrington, NJ Fire Department, Squad Co. 4 along with Camden’s Engine Company 9 and Battalion Chief 6. The first arriving units found heavy smoke conditions coming from a vacant two story dwelling. They were successful in stopping the spread of this fire before it also consumed the vacant building.

There were now three major fires along Mt. Vernon Street. The coverup units were still being dispatched to various nuisance fires.

At 9:29 p.m. a call for a dwelling fire at 422 South 6th Street. This just around the corner from the now under control fire on Washington Street. Engine Company 1 along with County Coverup Company, Engine Company 106, Westmont, NJ, Fire Department (who was just released from the Mt. Vernon fires) along with County Ladder Company 202, Blenheim Fire Co. along with Camden’s Battalion Chief 6, all hands were put to work on this job. Some 4 minutes later at 9:33 p.m. a call came in for a fire in the North Camden Section of the city for 253 Bailey Street. County Engine 206, Delaware Fire Company of Pennsauken, NJ, Township, along with Engine Company 109 Pennsauken Fire Company 2 along with Ladder Company 201 from Blackwood, NJ Fire Department and Camden’s Squad 4 and Battalion Chief 4, Joe Marini. Chief Marini being the first on the scene reported that they had a two story attached vacant with fire showing on all floors and would be using all hands.

Just as this fire was being placed under control another blaze broke out some seven blocks away in North Camden. Units were dispatched to 626 North 9th Street. Engine Company 11, Ladder Company 201 from Blackwood FD. (who just left the Bailey Street fire) along with Camden Squad Company 4 and Battalion Chief 6. The first arriving units found heavy fire conditions in the rear of a row of three story vacant brick dwellings. As the lines were being stretched, members noticed smoke coming from the rear of a row of vacant dwellings to the left of the fire building that they were working on. This turned out to be a pile of trash and was quickly extinguished.

Things seemed to quiet down after this call, there were only a few rubbish calls. The Town Watch has over a thousand volunteers combing the streets with the assistance of City Police. Many said, that this helped control some of the vandalism, and most of the major fires were held in a small part of the city.

Camden Fire Chief, Kenneth Penn, who was working at the Command Center, responded to a few of the working fires and commented the men for their outstanding work, as no multiple alarms were sounded and all the jobs were held with 1 alarm. He had high praise for all of his members and for all the Mutual Aid Companies which assisted his Department throughout the night.

There was a total of 67 calls with 15 working fires.

Companies assisting the Camden Fire Department were Oaklyn, Mt. Ephraim, Westmont, Brooklawn, Collingswood, Pennsauken Companies 2, 4, and 5. Woodlynne, Audubon, Gloucester City, Merchantville, Barrington, Lawnside, Cherry Hill, Bellmawr Park, Magnolia, West Berlin, Runnemede, Ashland of Voorhees Twp. along with Ladder companies from Blackwood, Blenheim, Chews Landing, Voorhees, and Canteen 1. County Fire Dispatchers working the Fire Board were Captain George Martin, working at the Command Center, Dispatchers Jim Jankowski and Mike Howard working the Fire Radio.

Handling Operation out of Camden City Fire Headquarters, working along with Deputy Chief James Nash were County Mutual Aid Coordinator Lee Ryan, along with County Fire Coordinator Jim Jombe and Deputy Coordinator Bill Schaffer who were handling the Mutual Aid Apparatus at the Staging areas in Collingswood and Pennsauken.

All in all, a job well done.