Early Morning Excitement

Tomas

Banned
Joined
Jun 19, 2002
Messages
2,128
Location
Seattle, WA area
Well, I was sitting at my computer, doing some Photoshop playing when I heard thundering footsteps up above, running down the hallway (at 2:08AM). I popped out of my apartment and headed toward the stairwell they were running toward to see what I could see when the building fire alarms went off.

At that, I charged up the stairs to the third floor (from the second) and met one of our other tenants with panic in his eyes and an extinguisher in his hand banging on the manager's door. He said there was a fire in his apartment and took off back toward it. I followed him (to the fourth floor apartment) after letting the manager know, calling 911 on the way.

The power was out on the east side of his apartment and the only light was from the fire on his deck. My EDC's came in handy (two LS's). By this time another tenant, an ex volunteer fire type, showed up and we sent him for another extinguisher (he returned with two).

All in all it wasn't that bad - a fair amount of smoke damage and probably $5-6000 worth of structure. Ignition source was the deck light fixture wiring.

Only injury was the tenant who's apartment it was - some smoke inhalation (he sounded like a gagging frog when he talked and his asthma was acting up) and a cut hand from breaking the glass to get the first extinguisher. He went through 4 extinguishers keeping the fire controlled until the fire department got here and took over (they arrived in probably 4 to 6 minutes from the time they were notified). The worst part of the smoke was some hard-shelled plastic luggage was part of the fire (that stuff not only stinks, but four '2A-10BC' dry-chem extinguishers won't put it out.

As The FD was arriving we left the building, with me making a quick stop on the way out as we passed my apartment on the second floor to grab my big rechargable spotlight.

An interesting night was had by all 230 or so folks who live in this building. I saw people in the parking lot I'd never seen before. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Some of those fire folks really seem to enjoy taking chainsaws and fire axes to a building. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif Since we are a bit taller than the average building in town, they even dragged out the ladder truck. A good turnout, really, with six fire and one rescue truck.

All is back more or less to normal, and we'll look things over tomorrow when it's light. (We are checking the area of the fire once an hour at the FD's request just to make sure nothing sneaks up on us before then.

Think I'll drink some tea - my throat is rather sore from the smoke, too.

tomsig02.gif


P.S. As good as LS's are, they don't cut dense smoke ... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif
 

hotbeam

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jan 2, 2003
Messages
1,737
Location
Melb, AU
That sort of excitement I can do without!! Glad everything turned out ok for everyone. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif
 

The_LED_Museum

*Retired*
Joined
Aug 12, 2000
Messages
19,414
Location
Federal Way WA. USA
If someone activated the fire alarm in THIS building, the elevator would automatically go to the lobby and stay there, whether there are people in scooters & wheelchairs or not; so I'd have to leave pretty much everything up here and go downstairs via the stairwell with one of those aluminum walkator things. :O

I'm glad the fire in your building was minor and nobody was really hurt.

I've got a couple of those hard-shelled plastic briefcases with photo albums, school yearbooks, the family bible, and similar valuables in them - I'd probably throw them out my 3rd floor window if I thought they'd start burning, and hope they didn't burst open when they hit the street. No need for them to become stinky and hard to put out in any case. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 

Saaby

Flashaholic
Joined
Jun 17, 2002
Messages
7,447
Location
Utah
Did you save your Photoshop work before you left the apartment /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
 

Tomas

Banned
Joined
Jun 19, 2002
Messages
2,128
Location
Seattle, WA area
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif Yes, I did, Saaby. I guess I'm too much of a geek to just get up and walk away from it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/huh.gif
 

Rothrandir

Flashaholic
Joined
Aug 17, 2002
Messages
7,795
Location
US
couldn't you just slide down the railing craig? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

so thomas, what lights were the fireman using? pelicans?
 

The_LED_Museum

*Retired*
Joined
Aug 12, 2000
Messages
19,414
Location
Federal Way WA. USA
[ QUOTE ]
Rothrandir said:
couldn't you just slide down the railing craig? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

[/ QUOTE ]
If there was really a fire, and I had no other choise, I suppose I could. But once I reached the bottom, I wouldn't have my walkator or cane or scooter or chair, so I'd be kinda screwed unless somebody else carried my walkator or cane with them, and had it waiting for me at the bottom of the stairs. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif
 

Rothrandir

Flashaholic
Joined
Aug 17, 2002
Messages
7,795
Location
US
true, true...

just carry a couch cushion, and throw it at the bottom before you start your slide /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

Floating Spots

Enlightened
Joined
Aug 7, 2002
Messages
667
Location
Elkhart, IN
I helped put out a fire yesterday, too.
I was once again amazed at how well halon works.
I put out a grass fire and about 4 tires that were too close to a garage fire. All with a 7 lb extinguisher. Dry chem extinguishers wouldn't have touched what this little extinguisher put out!
 

tsg68

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Mar 1, 2003
Messages
1,248
Location
Breukelen, NY established 1646
Glad to hear nobody was seriously hurt, Tom. What would you consider in the future for an emergency light since the LS' didn't perform, any Ideas?

TSG /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

Tomas

Banned
Joined
Jun 19, 2002
Messages
2,128
Location
Seattle, WA area
TSG, it's not that the LS's didn't perform, it's that impenetrable smoke is basicly, uh, impenetrable ... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

I don't really know of any lighting device that will penetrate a smoke layer (that sort of thing was always a problem with airborn photography, also, because it is suspended particulates - solids).

I seem to recall a thread here on CPF trying to decide what color was best for a light source in smoke, but I don't recall any useful conclusion being reached.

In any case, the LS's put out enough concentrated light to work well enough when aimed down at the floor to allow one to see one's footing, at least.
 

tsg68

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Mar 1, 2003
Messages
1,248
Location
Breukelen, NY established 1646
Yeah, thanks Tom, "Duh, I is wicket smat" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/yellowlaugh.gif

Seriously though I was looking at a rechargeable lantern style, made here in the US by a subsidiary company called SHO-ME and I didn't know much about them till several members here said they had seen fire and rescue using them and one guy had purchased several at a rescue house auction he said they had a nice bright beam and lasted like four hours on a single charge, So I'm gonna get one when I have the funds and see how they work out, no LS by size comparison but I would like to have a nice emergency light and these seem to be smaller than the Streamlight rechargeable lanterns.

TSG /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

Tomas

Banned
Joined
Jun 19, 2002
Messages
2,128
Location
Seattle, WA area
Yeah, a BIG light is sometimes the only proper tool.

The "rechargable spot" I grabbed on my way out is a heavy, ugly, awkward lead-acid beast with a nice 5 watt krypton bulb and a 4 inch reflector. (Surprisingly it beat all but one of the lights the firefighters had handy except for the truck-mounted lights. It nicely lit smoke rising from the roof vents from about 150 feet that their handhelds and helmet mounted lights didn't quite pick up.

One of the guys did seem to have an interesting long range light: Incredibly tight beam in an intense white, hand held and seemingly about the size of a 2C Mag (I wasn't close enough to get a better view). That little beast drove a BAR of light that had only expanded to maybe a foot at 15 to 20 feet. It had essentially zero sidelighting, though. Good for looking at or highlighting a tiny area at a distance, but not much good for anything else. He also had a helmet mounted flood.

Interestingly, most of their work HAD to be done with portable lighting as the truck mounted lights could not get to where they were working (unless they wanted to try parking one of their trucks in the pool), and the fire had taken out the commercial power in that part of the building.

From the pool edge, inside the pool fence, I basicly was able to provide a general area light to their workspace from about 100 feet with my lead-acid blob (Sears Craftsman Professional rechargable orange thing).

T_sig2.gif
 

Rothrandir

Flashaholic
Joined
Aug 17, 2002
Messages
7,795
Location
US
it was probably a pelican. they have tight beams, and a lot of fd's use them.
 

FalconFX

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Nov 1, 2002
Messages
3,297
Location
Davis, CA
Pelican or Magchargers... The anemically thin beams I usually see from PDs are magchargers...
 

Rothrandir

Flashaholic
Joined
Aug 17, 2002
Messages
7,795
Location
US
sounds like the zero has an amazing spot beam. s4madman reported over 38000lux! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif
 
Top