Fire Department

An article in the March 16, 1912, edition of The Argus praised the power and speed of the fire department's new fire engine. Since the inauguration, several months ago, of automobile service in the Fire Department at Catonsville, the efficiency of the service in that suburb has been greatly increased and the big motor car has proved its superiority over the slower horse-drawn apparatus many times. The Catonsville Fire Department claims that their new automobile is the fastest in the State.

When units from Ellicott City's fire Station 8 roll out on a cardiac arrest call, each crew member already knows who will start chest compressions, who will operate the defibrillator and who will provide artificial respiration to get oxygen flowing to the brain and heart. It might sound like an obvious plan. But the advance coordination is part of a new effort by Howard County's first responders to get quicker and more efficient help to those in urgent need. "Believe it or not, this is groundbreaking," said Dr. Kevin G. Seaman, the medical director of the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services.

The U.S. Justice Departmenthas opened an investigation of possible racial discrimination in hiring at the Baltimore County police and fire departments, according to correspondence between the agency and the county. The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division recently sent a two-page letter asking the county for "more information regarding the hiring of African Americans. " Specifically, the agency asked about entry-level hiring at the two departments to help it "fully evaluate whether or not the County is in violation.

Your recent article about Truck Company 10 accurately portrayed the role this and other units played in the rescue of three young children from an early morning apartment building fire on West Lexington Street ("Union lauds fire co. set to disband," May 7). Truck 10, which along with Truck Company 15 and Squad 11, is slated to be closed permanently on July 1, has already taken 2,212 runs this year, including 79 reports of fire. Each of these three companies responds to thousands of calls from citizens every year.

FIREFIGHTERS throughout Howard County are honoring their "brothers" lost in the terrorist attacks Sept. 11 with FDNY (Fire Department of New York) American flag stickers on most of the emergency vehicles. It started with an idea from master firefighter Dylan Murray of Fire and Rescue Station 6 in Savage and his wife, Cindy, a graphic designer at Madison Avenue Inc., a sign company in east Columbia. In the past, Cindy Murray has created stickers for firefighters' helmets with their names and companies in reflective materials to enable them to know who's who when they are in the "thick of things," Dylan Murray said.

Recent claims suggesting that fire and emergency medical response for the citizens of Baltimore have been diminished to dangerous levels are unfortunate and simply not accurate. ("Rawlings-Blake policies make Baltimore less safe," Readers respond, Sept. 14). The facts: the number of fatal fires and fire deaths are at historic lows this year, and the number of structure fires continues to decrease. Credit for those accomplishments goes to the men and women of the Baltimore City Fire Department who work hard day and night to keep us all safe.

When units from Ellicott City's fire Station 8 roll out on a cardiac arrest call, each crew member already knows who will start chest compressions, who will operate the defibrillator and who will provide artificial respiration to get oxygen flowing to the brain and heart. It might sound like an obvious plan. But the advance coordination is part of a new effort by Howard County's first responders to get quicker and more efficient help to those in urgent need. "Believe it or not, this is groundbreaking," said Dr. Kevin G. Seaman, the medical director of the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services.

Jeff King spent the day car shopping, but only after starting out with his ritual stop at Dunkin' Donuts. Gary Jones got ready for what he hoped to be the first of many golf outings and performed chores from the proverbial "honey-do" list. Jeff Loomis put in a double shift on the maintenance staff at Carroll County Hospital Center, where he has worked part-time since last summer. That is how the three veteran Howard County firefighters spent the first day of their respective retirements last week, after ending careers that combined for more than 100 years on the job. "One of the things everyone always told me is that you'll know when it's time to leave," King, one of the department's two deputy chiefs, said Friday.

For the first time, all 1,800 Baltimore fire personnel will undergo departmentwide health tests during a wellness project that officials hope will become a yearly event. Next week, Professional Health Services vans will begin conducting screenings — including hearing, vision, pulmonary and heart — at five department operations in the city. The Fire Department will get aggregate data after testing is complete, though individual results will be kept between patients and physicians.

The city might have to pay $164,000 back to the federal government after the money was mixed with funds in an "off-the-books" log intended to circumvent oversight rules, an audit of Fire Department spending revealed. The department's training academy made more than $237,000 in unauthorized purchases from Draeger Safety Inc. over a four-year period, according to the audit, which was prompted by a 2007 investigation by The Baltimore Sun. Some funds granted by the Department of Homeland Security were mixed with rebates from Draeger in the clandestine account, Robert McCarty, the city auditor, told the city's spending board Wednesday.

When a fire broke out at a Canton warehouse April 22 and firefighters confirmed there were dangerous chemicals inside the building, it spawned some basic questions for reporters. What sorts of chemicals were present, and what risks do they pose? Did they cause any harm to people, animals or the environment? Officials with the fire department and Maryland Department of the Environment were forthcoming, explaining that powerful acids were stored in the warehouse for use in anodizing metals.

Dispatched to a one-story brick warehouse in flames on Baylis Street in Canton last month, firefighters did not know it contained 8,000 gallons of corrosive chemicals. But not because it wasn't known to the Baltimore City Fire Department. Its hazardous materials permit database included the warehouse and chemicals, but is so arcane that it's impossible to point and click through it using a computer mouse. The chemicals also were disclosed by the owner on an annual hazmat form required under a federal law inspired when a chemical gas leak killed 5,000 people in India in 1984.

William B. Levin, a longtime member of the Pikesville Volunteer Fire Company and senior claims adjuster at the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, died Friday in hospice care at the Gilchrest Center of kidney cancer. He was 65 and had battled cancer for several years. Members of the Pikesville company held a birthday party for him April 25 in the chapel at Greater Baltimore Medical Center. They awarded him a life membership, recognizing his 24 years of service with the volunteer company.

Howard County fire fighters on Thursday extinguished an early morning fire outside the Sears store at The Mall in Columbia. According to the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services, emergency units responded to a call at 5:40 a.m. and found a fire in a trailer attached to a loading dock outside Sears. Crews quickly put out the fire and obtained a ventilation unit from Montgomery County to help remove smoke from inside the store. No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is under investigation, according to the fire department.

Howard County fire fighters put out a one-alarm fire that was reported early Wednesday morning inside a state-owned vehicle repair shop in Dayton. According to the Howard County Department of Fire and Rescue Services, crews responded to an alarm around 3 a.m. in the 4400 block of Route 32 and found a vehicle on fire inside the repair shop, causing heavy smoke. The six-bay garage is owned and operated by the State Highway Administration. The fire was extinguished within half an hour, causing little damage to the building and no reported injuries, according to the fire department.

Michael Vincent Manieri, a Baltimore City firefighter and medic, died of heart disease Wednesday at St. Joseph Medical Center. He was 40 and lived in Towson. Born in Baltimore and raised on Parklawn Avenue, he attended Shrine of the Little Flower School and Archbishop Curley High School. He later took emergency medical training courses at the Community College of Baltimore County at Essex. "It was his dream to become a firefighter from the time he was 9 years old," said his father, Frank Manieri of Towson.

The way in which Herman Williams Jr. was appointed the city's new fire chief was extraordinary. No vacancy was declared upon the retirement of Peter O'Connor, no applicants were invited. Instead, the newly appointed fire board simply declared Mr. Williams the new chief. Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke pronounced himself "pleased with the fire board's selection."Mr. Williams cannot be blamed for this irregular process. The only thing he did -- with success -- was to campaign for the fire chief's job, saying his 26 years as a firefighter (including three as a battalion chief)

Howard County residents would see no property tax increase this year, but they could pay a higher fire tax under an $899 million budget proposal unveiled Friday by County Executive Ken Ulman. General fund spending, which represents money raised through local taxes and fees, would increase less than 3 percent. "It is really a maintenance budget," Ulman said of the spending plan that, if approved by the County Council, would take effect July 1. A state budget impasse has left state aid up in the air and the question of who will pay teacher pension costs unresolved, but Ulman said his plan is based on a deal made but not passed before time ran out on this year's General Assembly session.

Firefighters responded to a three-alarm blaze at a Glen Burnie apartment complex early Tuesday, according to the Anne Arundel County fire department. No injuries were reported. Units were called to the three-story building in the Villages at Marley Station complex in the 100 block of Faywood Ave. shortly before 3:30 a.m., officials said. The first unit encountered heavy smoke and reports of people possibly trapped inside upon arrival to the scene, so additional resources were requested, officials said.