Fighting Fire - Motorcycle-Journal Forums

**inspiron** · 03-31-2009, 09:08 AM

So, after more than 5 years as a volunteer firefighter, I am now officially a fireman. Around 9pm last night, a fire broke out in a house in the next town (Bubendorf). Our fire department will be merging with the Bubendorf department at the end of this year, so we have an agreement to help out when they need us (which isn't very often, since they are much bigger and better equipped than we are).

One 2nd floor apartment was fully engulfed when the alarm went out, so the flames spread into an adjacent apartment before the hoses could be connected up and water started flowing. The Bubendorf commander called in backup from the next larger town (the "state" capital, about 5 miles away) to help contain the blaze.

We were called in after the fire had been put out - our job was to watch the two apartments for hot spots and flair ups.

I received the call-up around 11pm last night, telling me to be in our firehouse at 12:45am. We were down at the scene just after 1am, and on-site until 5:30am.

For the first 2 hours, my partner Dani and I were in the rear apartment, where there were a large number of hot spots. The apartment is a total loss - the "floor" of the top floor (attic) is mostly gone, and all of the beams are charred. The parts that remain are totally waterlogged and will have to be replaced too. The lower level (living room, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom) was filled with about 2" of water, and everything there was charred or completely melted, too.

At about 3am we were relieved and able to take a short break. (The restaurant in the next building remained open all night for us, since the owners couldn't sleep anyway). During the break, we were discussing how everyone got out of the house, but that two cats were still missing.

Following our break, we went into the other apartment, where the fire had originally started. The 1st floor apartment was heavily damaged (one room by fire, and the rest through water damage). Upstairs, where the fire started, the bathroom and two bedrooms were more or less destroyed, and the third bedroom (farthest from the ignition point) was heavily damaged. The attic was also totally destroyed. We spend lots of time up there trying to cool down the hotspots.

As we were entering the 2nd apartment, I came around the corner to climb the stairs and my flashlight lit up a very wet and scared looking cat, staring at me from the staircase. It looked like the cat had been hiding in the basement, and finally came out when everyone had left the building for a few minutes. I grabbed the cat and took it outside, handing it over to the restaurant owners, who then contacted the apartment owner.

Their apartment is a total loss, but at least I was able to rescue the cat. We searched the whole building again, hoping to find the second cat, but we didn't find any trace of it We hope that it was able to escape the building and will turn up again soon.

Standing in the ruins of someone's apartment didn't bother me too much, but the rescue of the cat really got to me. For some reason, the expression on the cat's face (W.T.F. happened to MY HOME?) has burned itself into my memory...

PS - I just read in our local newspaper that the fire was caused by a cigarette ...