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CREWS
BATTLE HEAVY FIRE IN A LOCAL SHOOTING RANGE |
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March 18, 2007
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At
1234 hours, Tower 501 was dispatched as the second due
truck on mutual box 02-16 for a fire in Shooters
Paradise shooting range located at
13979 Jefferson Davis Highway.
Chief 502 (Arrington) went on the scene immediately and
reported a working fire in the rear of the store. He
also made the notification that there was a considerable
ammunition hazard near the fire location. Wagon 502 arrived and made a push
through the front, encountering heavy smoke conditions
in the store area. As they made their way into the shooting
range, they began to feel high heat and could see the
fire burning at the end of the range. As 502’s crew
opened up their line, ammunition could be heard going
off. Command (AC Carroll) had 514 back 502 in front
while Engine and Rescue 510 were ordered to make entry
into the rear. Early on, Tower 512's roof team reported
major weakness in the roof. Command pulled the interior
companies back just as the roof and heavy duty HVAC
units caved in on the rear of the building. Tower 501
arrived and took a position in the rear. There they
assisted with forcing several doors, laddered the
roof, and used saws and hooks to cut open several roof
access and ventilation points. It wasn’t long before
they could feel the roof begin to rumble and shake.
Companies were pulled back further but continued to hold
there positions. As the last of the air handlers on the Charlie side began
to come in, an
outright defensive operation was taken. Towers 501 and
512 backed off to the exposure roofs and continued to
work on opening up the buildings as companies were still
operating on the inside of the exposures. Command
ordered Tower 501 to begin flowing their ladder pipe
into the rear of the fire building. They operated both monitor nozzles and an 1 ½
hand line
while Towers 512 and 424 operated in the front. Several
hand lines were also operated from the roofs of the
exposures. With the fire still burning under the
collapsed portion of the building, Command requested
heavy equipment to come in and remove the rear wall. A Prince William
County Department of Public Works track hoe arrive and
began demolition of the building, allowing firefighters
access to extinguish the fire. Tower 501 continued to
operate for several more hours and finally went ready at
1842 hours, while the last County units cleared the scene at
approximately 2200 hours. The scene was left with a
security team and officials from the Fire Marshals
Office and the BATF. The cause of the fire is still
under investigation. An excellent effort on the part of
all companies on the box kept this fire from
spreading to the adjoining buildings. |
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First
Photo courtesy of Ginger Trest, some other courtesy
of OWLVFD. |
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Manassas Volunteer Fire Company |
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