Worst Fires

[61MACKBR1 222]

I remember that event very well. It was a real burner !! That Fanny Farmer Store, the Jewelry Store and especially the Famous Bee Hive Restaurant, which was a main-stay in Mount Vernon for many many years, went down to the ground. Mount Vernon had almost 1/2 of Yonkers and 1/2 of New Rochelle helping out with that fire. I wonder if anyone has any PHOTOS or NEWS CLIPPINGS of that event that they can share with all of us?

[LCFD968 10]

I am trying to remember. Mamaroneck ave. Apartment building right near Boston Post rd. 1 fatality. I was an explorer in Mamaroneck at the time. I can't remember the year, 1985 maybe. Winter time. I stole my mothers car to go help out.We were there for 14 hrs or so.(Mom wasn't so happy, I was punished for about a year).

[LCFD994 8]

How About :

The Stouffers Inn Fire ( i think 1980 )

The Propane Truck Explosion on I-287

The Apartment Fire in White Plains at the corner of Lexington & Maple, where the WPFD FF was killed. Please forgive me for not remembering his name, it was a while ago.

[TR54 239]

Firefighter Warren R. Ogburn, White Plains 1993

Nicholas994

The Apartment Fire in White Plains at the corner of Lexington & Maple, where the WPFD FF was killed. Please forgive me for not remembering his name, it was a while ago

[firemn23 8]

This could be a tough one but could we compose a top ten worst fires of the last 20 years?

[LCFD994 8]

Thanks TR54....I appreciate you recalling that...

[Alfons0x66 0]

that fire in mamaroneck was in 1984-85, was the Townhouse bar/lounge fire. Thing burned for about 12 hrs straight. Started in the basement area which was the Townhouse, then went straight up through the walls. Sad part was that there were only two exits, fortunately I dont believe anyone died in the scene that I would imagine looked similar to the Rhode Island night club fire

[dc2t 80]

Town House fire circa 1981, very cold, Now house Condo Complex

[dc2t 80]

Line of duty deaths

Lt Gary Kuenher

Harry Korwatch

[fitzjr11 17]

OCT 1996 while in riding w/ ambulance in rockland structure fire of fire fighter, and i believe past chief Al DeFlumere and son's house were killed, overcome by smoke both found at windowsill

[BmSmall92 1]

Really bad fire I remember was the Main St fire in Ossining in 1995. The old Kipps Pharmacy building and two other buildings caught fire. I believe it was started by a spark in the wiring in a dentist office. It seemed like they were there for 3 days putting out the fire. Another large fire that I have heard from and surprised people haven't posted yet was the GM plant fire of 1968 where the fire was so intense it melted the plastic on the Sleepy Hollow trucks.

[JBE 328]

I went out on a date with a girl I went to High School with. We went to dinner at the Throggs Neck Clipper. Then we headed over to the Whitestone Cinemas and nothing there was worth watching so we decided to make it a Blockbuster night. On our way there we noticed smoke pushing from the C o c kloft of a row of Taxpayers on E. Tremont Avenue and Lafayette Avenue. We stopped and buffed it. Ended up going to a third. One of my more memorable dates. Shoulda stuck with her for a while.

[WAS967 97]

We stopped and buffed it. Ended up going to a third. One of my more memorable dates. Shoulda stuck with her for a while.

Wait? WE? Did she actually think it was cool or did she sit there twiddling her thumbs? If she thought it was cool then you DAMN RIGHT you shoulda kept her around! :->

[JBE 328]

She had an interested look on her face. My current fiancee is into it as well. Buffed a third in Brooklyn a few years back and she left complaining she didn;t see any visible fire, just smoke. Now THERE'S a girl ya want to keep around.

Another memorable one, family related. The Seavey Plaza fire of January 91. I was an explorer in Lake Carmel at the time. Heard the tones go out, heard the chief pull up and advise a working fire. Asked my mom if that was her building. And sure enough, off we went. I'm in my explorer turnouts changing bottles watching my mom cry as her office building burned to the ground. Kinda sad. Brewsters old hose rig, 11-8-1 stretching 5 inch down Route 52 from Shop Rite to supply the engines and the ladder pipes. Mutual aid from all over the place. East Fishkill, Put Valley, Mahopac Falls on Stand by.

[Guest]

i am only a junior member on the dept on cape cod in MA and i think the biggest fire that i remember was in p-town, about 5 or 6 towns up the cape in 1997 or 1998. the fire gutted about 5 building and damaged many more. it was a 5 alarm fire but really would have been more but thats as high as the running cards went so they inprovieds. instead of striking an alarm they requested i think 4 engines at a time or requested 2 or 3 ambulances. it was a very large fire. they were still wetting it down 3 days after it was declared undercontrol. :wink:

capecodfd.com

[ny10570 745]

I saw that fire, lost alot of downtown. pretty wild...high wind and heavy fire load. I also caught a marina fire there back inthe summer of 2001a couple of nice yachts went up if I remmeber correctly. You could see the smoke from Boston harbor

[HFD23 37]

Hartsdale 68 East Hartsdale ave, may 1993 6 ladder pipes in operation, numerious other mutual aid, HFD ladder 47, GFD ladder 4, Elmsford ladder 55, Dobbs ferry Tl-23 Yonkers Tl-75, And scarsdale's stick

[cazyman31 2]

COOL DUDES

[Guest]

The worst fire that comes to my mind was in December 1999 in Ossining, 71 Charter Circle. This is where CFD almost lost 4 firefighters, ,due to a rapidly progressing fire. Thank god, we are here able to talk about it...By the way all those rumors that the guys were freelancing is all bs...Acted as a RESCUE TEAM at this incident. Gotta love the arm chair quarterbacks out there!!!

[x242Steve 1]

Rye:

February 1996, Pine Island Mansion fire, stone structure w/ slate roof. Water supply problems and severe freezing weather.

June 2004, double-fatal fully-involved house on Mayfield St.

[Guest]

In the Olivia Riner Thornwood case, it was the baby's older sister's boyfriend who was the shady character. I recall seeing video of the fire, an outdoor scene with fire on the outside wall nowhere near a basement window.

[Stepjam 118]

In the Olivia Riner Thornwood case, it was the baby's older sister's boyfriend who was the shady character. I recall seeing video of the fire, an outdoor scene with fire on the outside wall nowhere near a basement window.

You're right. I thought it was a young male "relative". The DA's zeal to nail that young girl was baseless (it was Pirro, right?), I was embarrassed to be a Westchester resident.

[Guest]

Stepjam, it has also been THEORISED that the older sister was jealous of the baby, and that she was no longer Daddy's little girl. The DA was Pirro, but I will say no more, the moderator sucked the venom out of my post, (justifiably so mod, to this day that case gets me hot under the collar, I will exercise better etiquette in future). I am personally acquainted with an MPPD officer that swears Ms. Riner was guilty, but I (speaking for myself) am not convinced the officer believed his own words. Too many variables were not properly accounted for in that case to bring it to trial. As an aside, Ms. Riner's attorney was Laura Brevetti, known for securing Vince McMahon's acquittal in the federal steroid rap he faced in the early 90's.

[ny10570 745]

engine235 any sentiments and words you have to share about Pirro she deserves. We still have an unsolved murder of a FF that she won't acknowledge. I have quite a few choice words and desires for her future that I would love to share with her.

[nyemt131411 3]

does anybody remember the week long fire on Croton Avenue back in January 0f 76? It averaged around zero to 15 below- the fire took so long to put out because everything kept freezing! I remeber there was a picture in the newspaper of a few FF's standing in the street (One was my Dad-Eddie Hoyt Rescue 14) and they had icicles hanging off their helmets, and ice everywhere else!Old time members on Ossining will remeber this one.....there's a picture on Ladder42.com . . .

[VistaFD126 0]

in 1954 our firehouse had burned down, one of our firefighters was on his way home from CT, he saw a huge orange glow in the sky and rushed to his house to see if it was his....when he saw it wasn't he went to the firehouse to pick up a rig, when all of a sudden we pulled up to see the firehouse fully involved....also I have heard many of our older members talking about a real bad plane crash in Croton Falls that we went to along with many other departments can anyone give mr further info?? thanks

[IzzyEng4 427]

Worst fires I can remeber

1976 - B. F. Goodrich -Sponge Rubber in Shelton, I was about 3 or 4 years old and I remember hearing the explosion at plant #4 go. Next thing I know ny dad was running out of the door. All of Shelton, Derby, Ansonia, Monroe, Stratford and Seymour went. Bridgeport, New Haven, Cheshire, Hamden, Woodbeifgre Oerange and Waterbury sent units to help out. Took something like two or three days to put out. Was the biggest arson / domestic terror bombing in the US up until the first trade center bombing. The then owners did it cause they would get super ricch, but it back fired on them. The old timers said there were 55 gallon drums filled with gas and wrapped with TNT. There weere too many of them to count.

For me recently, Latex Foam products in Ansonia, CT on May 14th, 2001. I was in my second term as a lieutenant when the factory went up. There were 2 fires, the first having been put out. The second started right after we were leaving quite sometome after. It was traced back to the drying ovens (that were originally used at Sponge Rubber in Shelton!!!) There were a few of us that went back inside to get all the workers out, since the all clear was given 2 or 3 hours before to return. We ended up getting disoriented and after what seemed like an eternity, we finnally got out, though the roof was comming down on our heads. It just went too quick. No civilians were injured at all but severeal firefighters received injuries. Again we have units from Ansonia, Derby, Seymour, Shelton, Woodbridge, Stratford, monore, New Haven, Bridgeport, Trumbull Center, oxford and Beacon Falls respond.

[Ladder44 73]

Dobbs Ferry Genera l Alarm- 12/15/97

[danb 10]

Some of the more memorable jobs in southern orange county over the past 10-15 years..

Jamesway ( Monroe)

Bowl o Fun ( Monroe)

Beckwiths...both times? ( Monroe)

Ace Farms ( Woodbury)

all were pretty big...the jamesway fire in 90 practicly every company in orange county was involved with and quet a few rockland companies made the trip up for it

[ex-commish 490]

The worst I encountered was about 10 years ago we were dispatched to a reported basement fire. As we arrived a police officer yelled to us that a woman was trapped in the basement. At this point heavy fire and smoke were blowing out of the front door and the "d" side of the house. He attempted to descend but was driven back by the heat.

One of our Lt's, and two firefighters descended into the basement. It seemed that they were down there for a long time so myself and another member were ordered to go after them. As we hit the top of the stairs of the basement the first crew was pulling her up the stairs. We assisted in pulling her outside. I began to do an assessment on her and as I opened her airway it was as black as charcoal in fact her entire body was pretty much burnt. I will never forget what her face look liked. What is even sadder is she initially got out of her basement apartment when the fire broke out. She fell asleep smoking. She ran upstairs to alert her landlord but attempted to run back down to get her cat. We believe she lost her balance on the stairs and fell and hit her head on a piano at the bottom of the stairs. There was blood on the piano and there was obvious trauma on her head.

Andy Mancusi

Chief

Hawthorne FD