Fire Department

Last year Baltimore City paid vendors more than $800 million, much of it for construction projects, gas and electricity, trash and recycling services, transportation and the like, according to monthly figures posted on a city website. But some purchases look odder than others, at least at first blush: Frozen mice. A mink coat. Paintball. About $27,000 worth of food from S'ghetti Eddie's for the Fire Department. Those spending details and many others emerged during a Baltimore Sun review of the city's 2012 figures.

A Baltimore Fire Department division developed to increase recruitment among black city residents and combat racial tensions within the department's ranks is set to be eliminated in a planned round of budget cutbacks. The move has caused concerns among African-American leaders in the department. Lloyd Carter, the deputy chief for recruitment, who would be reassigned under Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake's budget for the next fiscal year, said he believes his position and the small division built around it should be saved.

In the article titled "Fire squad might relocate" (April 13), Baltimore City Fire Department Chief James S. Clack states, "When the mayor was able to find the money to keep Truck 10, that changed the equation. " The article goes on to state that the current citywide arrangement of companies is based on choices made when Truck 10 was lost. With Truck 10 still in service, he said, the deployment of companies needs to be tweaked. Am I now to understand that if Truck 10, which is located in West Baltimore, had closed then, the figures noted in the article such as Truck 5 which has seen an increase in calls of nearly 65 percent and Engine 6 and Truck 1 who have seen an increase in calls of 41 percent and 43 percent respectively, would not have occurred, considering those three companies are situated in East Baltimore?

Among the 78 calls for medical, fire and rescue service the Arbutus Volunteer Fire Department received during the period April 7-14 were the following: 100 Kenwood Avenue, 2:34 a.m. April 11. Crews from the Arbutus, English Consul and Lansdowne volunteer stations and Catonsville, Halethorpe, Randallstown, Westview and Woodlawn career stations responded to the report of a fire on the campus of the Western School of Technology and Environmental Science....

Fire Chief James S. Clack is considering moving a West Baltimore fire company across town this summer to alleviate the strain on East Baltimore units after two fire companies closed there last year. Clack said the plan, which has not been finalized and must be reviewed by the City Council, is an attempt to respond to a spike in calls to east-side companies — some have seen jumps of more than 50 percent — since East Baltimore's Truck 15 and Southeast Baltimore's Squad 11 were closed last summer.

A report of smoke coming from the roof forced a brief evacuation of Southampton Middle School in Bel Air Tuesday. Around 2:30 p.m., the Harford County 911 Center dispatched fire equipment to the school in the 1200 block of Moores Mill Road to investigate a report of smoke coming from the roof. The Bel Air Volunteer Fire Company responded; however, the first emergency responder to the scene reported no fire or smoke evident upon arrival, according to monitored broadcasts. Meanwhile, students and staff were evacuated and stood outside in the warm afternoon sunshine, while a fire crew climbed around on the roof but found nothing.

The Laurel Volunteer Fire Department presented its Member of the Month Awards during a recent department meeting. Fire fighters Steve Paratore, Ross Nelson and Robert Grant were presented certificates and gift cards from President Vic Whipple and Chief Trey Kelso. In a new addition to the monthly awards program, Auxiliary President May-Lynn Bayles has started a similar program for the Auxiliary membership. Auxiliary members Sue Frost, Sharon Mitchell and Barbara Sellner received certificates of recognition at a recent Auxiliary meeting.

A former volunteer firefighter who worked with youths at the Lansdowne department pleaded guilty Monday to sexually abusing a teenage boy he mentored in a training program at the station. Anthony Maurice Cottle, 23, who appeared Monday in Baltimore County Circuit Court, also faces federal charges. Cottle, a resident of Owings Mills, was also a paid firefighter with the Baltimore County Fire Department. He has been suspended without pay from that department since being charged in October.

Anne Arundel County Fire Chief John Robert Ray, who has been with the department for 35 years, announced Friday that he will retire on May 1, according to the department's spokesman. Ray had served in every division of the fire department when he was appointed chief in 2008 at the age of 52. He oversaw changes that included implementing billing for emergency medical services and pushed for mandating sprinklers in new homes in the county. In the news release, Anne Arundel County Executive Laura Neuman wished Ray well.

The Baltimore City Fire Department is investigating the cause of a fire Sunday morning at 3023 La Rue Square in the Cherry Hill neighborhood, according to Lt. Paul Novak. The fire occurred around 11:30 a.m. on the second floor of a two-story dwelling. The residence was occupied at the time, but no one was injured, Novak said. Damage to the residence was extensive, but limited to the second floor, he said. Text BUSINESS to 70701 to get Baltimore Sun Business text alerts