5 Maydays Called in D.C. Apartment Fire
Posted in Accountability, Self Rescue, RIT Team Basics, Command, Communications, Firefighter Removal, In The News on March 14th, 2008 by Administrator 

A five alarm fire at the Meridian Park Apartments, which started around midnight, forced up to 200 people from the burning building and two other buildings on the street. Flames shot from the roof of the four-story apartment building at 3145 Mount Pleasant Street, NW, and spread to four adjacent buildings and the nearby Meridian Hill Baptist Church. Crews first focused on evacuating the buildings, getting all of the residents out safely. Some people came out of the burning building on their own. Others climbed down ground ladders and some were carried out of the building by firefighters. The calls for firefighters in distress came as crews made sure the last occupants were out of the building and defensive operations were about to begin. Only two of the mayday calls were actually for firefighters who became separated from their crews or became disoriented. The rest of the calls were for crew members who were missing from their companies, but turned out to be safe outside the building. RIT crews and other companies were assigned immediately to the rescue efforts. The first arriving firefighters were met with fire in the basement, second and third floors of the large, U-shaped apartment building. As engine companies attempted to keep the fire in check, truck and rescue company crews helped those who needed assistance getting out of the building. Two firefighters from Rescue 2 removed some of the last civilians trapped in the building. Both firefighters returned to the fourth floor to finish checking the other apartments. Within minutes fire on the top floor cut them off from the stairwell. The lieutenant called a mayday. There were some very tense moments as command conversed by radio with the two firefighters, guiding them to windows on the front of the structure. A tower ladder was in position and quickly moved the bucket to one of the windows as the lieutenant appeared. It is reported that another group of firefighters took refuge in a stairwell to get away from the rapidly advancing fire. Command also communicated with the trapped firefighters to get ladders to the crews trapped on the upper floors. Five-alarms were needed for the apartment building fire. A second-alarm was used on the church fire, with a third-alarm in staging. Mutual aid from Fairfax County, Montgomery County, and Prince George’s County were dispatched to the scene and to cover city fire stations.
-Keith
