November 6, 1973 was the day of the FDNY strike. It was a cold and miserable day everyone wanted to forget as soon as possible. Things had returned to "normal" for the night tour, if you could ever call those days "normal". Coney Island had already seen a 3rd alarm on Surf Ave during the 5 hour strike. It was now turning out to be a very busy night tour. There was a 3rd alarm lumber yard fire in Bay Ridge about 1800 hrs. which we had just returned from.
Boxes that night were all "1 and 1" response (1 engine, 1 truck) with battalion chief. We picked up Box 3501 while we were 10-8, about 2230 hrs. For some inspired reason, the dispatcher started a second truck and dispatched 1 and 2 along with the battalion. Maybe instinct. It took a long time to respond into Sea Gate and there are a lot of large buildings. E 318, L 166, L 161 and BC 43 churned along Surf Avenue. There were a lot of barren lots - no buildings, no cars, no people. This was a long run, for Coney Island units. This Seagate box was as close to the end of Coney Island as you could get. Seagate was a walled community, isolated from the crime, gangs and fires that were destroying Coney Island. It did not look like Mermaid Avenue with its burned-out tenaments, vacant buildings, junkies and liquor stores. Entry to Seagate was made through a gate at Surf Avenue and W 37 St. This isolated neighborhood was protected by the Seagate Police Department, an active private police department within NYC. This was also a low fire activity area. If companies had 15 runs in a night, none of them were in Seagate.
Responding into the Seagate community meant that airhorns and sirens which had echoed off the vacant buildings the last 4 minutes were no longer needed. There was not even a store in Seagate, as I remember. We caught up to and trailed L 166's tiller. The dispatcher started reported additional boxes pulled and I think gave a reported address. Still only a 1 and 2 response due to heavy response volume. We were still several blocks from the box, Surf and Beach 51 St, but we picked up the smell and haze of smoke - a job. We were trying to see what was burning. The L 166 officer gave an "Urgent - box 3501 10-75" before you could even see the fire building. It was Lt Ted Goldfarb, a good guy who later became a Deputy Chief. We turned the block and you could see a hugh 3 story, 2 wings, beachfront, stucco framed building, smoke pushing out of many windows. People in the windows, a lot of windows.
The battalion aide, another good firefighter, always a cool guy who knew what was going to happen - jumped on the radio and excitedly sent a message - "Urgent - 43 Bn to Brooklyn - 2nd alarm box 3501". There was heavy fire in the rear of the building, the 2nd and 3rd floors. Truck members immediately started to report people were trapped. No one knew how many people but there were a lot. This building had been converted to a rooming house. Truck members disappeared into the building with the Bn. Engine 318 stretched a line, fastest I've ever seen, to maintain the stairs. No one stopped to put on a mask. Guys were coming out of the building with kids, babies, people - turning around and disappearing back into the building. A 2nd line was stretched. Then a third. All into the fire building.
Maybe a dozen rescues were made by the first due units. Maybe more. No one ever knew how many people were in that crowded rooming house building. Many units operated here. Rescue 2 requested to come in on the 2nd, even though they were assigned to Coney Island boxes on the 3rd alarm. The closest deputy chief available was the 10th Division responding from Park Slope. The Superpumper responded. A fireboat responded. This job went to a 5th alarm. A lot of lives were saved here but it never made the news, never made a newspaper. This was just another job on a routine night. Another Brooklyn 3rd alarm came in even while this fire was in progress.
Amazingly, I found the audio to this fire on the Hartford Fire Radio site and the War Years audio series. On the recording are the activities and jobs of the day and about 35 minutes into the tape, this fire is recorded. Here is the audio link for Nov 6, 1973 http://podcast.freepgs.com/FDNY/0007x.wma
Boxes that night were all "1 and 1" response (1 engine, 1 truck) with battalion chief. We picked up Box 3501 while we were 10-8, about 2230 hrs. For some inspired reason, the dispatcher started a second truck and dispatched 1 and 2 along with the battalion. Maybe instinct. It took a long time to respond into Sea Gate and there are a lot of large buildings. E 318, L 166, L 161 and BC 43 churned along Surf Avenue. There were a lot of barren lots - no buildings, no cars, no people. This was a long run, for Coney Island units. This Seagate box was as close to the end of Coney Island as you could get. Seagate was a walled community, isolated from the crime, gangs and fires that were destroying Coney Island. It did not look like Mermaid Avenue with its burned-out tenaments, vacant buildings, junkies and liquor stores. Entry to Seagate was made through a gate at Surf Avenue and W 37 St. This isolated neighborhood was protected by the Seagate Police Department, an active private police department within NYC. This was also a low fire activity area. If companies had 15 runs in a night, none of them were in Seagate.
Responding into the Seagate community meant that airhorns and sirens which had echoed off the vacant buildings the last 4 minutes were no longer needed. There was not even a store in Seagate, as I remember. We caught up to and trailed L 166's tiller. The dispatcher started reported additional boxes pulled and I think gave a reported address. Still only a 1 and 2 response due to heavy response volume. We were still several blocks from the box, Surf and Beach 51 St, but we picked up the smell and haze of smoke - a job. We were trying to see what was burning. The L 166 officer gave an "Urgent - box 3501 10-75" before you could even see the fire building. It was Lt Ted Goldfarb, a good guy who later became a Deputy Chief. We turned the block and you could see a hugh 3 story, 2 wings, beachfront, stucco framed building, smoke pushing out of many windows. People in the windows, a lot of windows.
The battalion aide, another good firefighter, always a cool guy who knew what was going to happen - jumped on the radio and excitedly sent a message - "Urgent - 43 Bn to Brooklyn - 2nd alarm box 3501". There was heavy fire in the rear of the building, the 2nd and 3rd floors. Truck members immediately started to report people were trapped. No one knew how many people but there were a lot. This building had been converted to a rooming house. Truck members disappeared into the building with the Bn. Engine 318 stretched a line, fastest I've ever seen, to maintain the stairs. No one stopped to put on a mask. Guys were coming out of the building with kids, babies, people - turning around and disappearing back into the building. A 2nd line was stretched. Then a third. All into the fire building.
Maybe a dozen rescues were made by the first due units. Maybe more. No one ever knew how many people were in that crowded rooming house building. Many units operated here. Rescue 2 requested to come in on the 2nd, even though they were assigned to Coney Island boxes on the 3rd alarm. The closest deputy chief available was the 10th Division responding from Park Slope. The Superpumper responded. A fireboat responded. This job went to a 5th alarm. A lot of lives were saved here but it never made the news, never made a newspaper. This was just another job on a routine night. Another Brooklyn 3rd alarm came in even while this fire was in progress.
Amazingly, I found the audio to this fire on the Hartford Fire Radio site and the War Years audio series. On the recording are the activities and jobs of the day and about 35 minutes into the tape, this fire is recorded. Here is the audio link for Nov 6, 1973 http://podcast.freepgs.com/FDNY/0007x.wma