Today in Fire History 6/26

On 6/26/1964 in Marshall’s Creek, Pennsylvania (about 2 hours NW of NYC) firefighters responded to a tractor-trailer fire. The tractor-trailer had no cargo markings and the rear wheels of the tractor were on fire. “The American Cyanamid truck that was carrying 15 tons of explosives and 99 blasting caps when it caught fire and exploded shortly after 04:00 a.m. as the firefighters were preparing to attack the fire when the massive explosion occurred. Three firefighters and three civilians were killed in the explosion that also rocked a nearby reptile farm. Many exotic snakes got loose, while others were killed in the blast. A crater was formed that was 10 feet deep and 40 feet wide. The International Chamber of Commerce investigation focused on why three explosives warning placards that were on the truck the day before weren’t there when firefighters arrived. The truck driver said they had fallen off shortly before he pulled over to deal with two flat tires, which he said started to burn after he left to seek help. Others speculated the tires were already burning, a gas station attendant smelled burned rubber on the truck driver after he unhitched the explosives trailer and left it off Route 209′s shoulder. The driver disconnected his tractor from the trailer after two rear tires on the trailer went flat. He claimed he found the signs while driving to East Stroudsburg to call his employer to say he would be late in making his delivery. The placards were found under the seat in the cab of his tractor. A federal report on the blast said the signs showed no evidence of falling off the truck. The report also concluded the driver improperly took the signs off the trailer before leaving the blast scene. He was later charged with six counts of involuntary manslaughter, but he was acquitted after a trial in Northampton County Court.”

On 6/26/1977 the Maury County Jail fire killed forty-two in Columbia, Tennessee. Cyanide and carbon monoxide fumes filled the facility from a padded cell set on fire by an emotionally disturbed runaway youth from Wisconsin who would later be charged with arson and forty-two counts of manslaughter for the deaths of thirty-four prisoners and eight visitors. “Fifty-six inmates and about forty visitors were in the prisoner area shortly before 2:00 p.m. when Zimmer set fire to his cell with a cigarette given to him by someone visiting another prisoner. He began screaming “I’m on fire!” Five deputies were in the administration area at the front of the jail.” “Ambulances took 75 persons to the Maury County Hospital, 42 dead and 33 injured.”

On 6/26/1891 a Chicago, Illinois firefighter “died after he fell from a two-story roof while fighting a commercial fire at 263 W. 12th Street.”

On 6/26/1894 a Bridgeport, Connecticut firefighter “died of the injuries he sustained after being involved in a ladder accident.”

On 6/26/1911 an explosion during a fire at an oil company in Portland, Oregon killed one firefighter and injured three other firefighters. The firefighter “died while fighting the $100,000 Union Oil fire at E. Salmon and Water Streets. He had gone into the burning building shortly before an explosion occurred which took his life.”

On 6/26/1918 a San Diego, California firefighter “died in the performance of his duties while operating at a fire.”

On 6/26/1957 a Manhattan, New York (FDNY) firefighter “died from a heart attack caused by oxide fumes at a fire.”

On 6/26/1961 a Chicago, Illinois firefighter “died during an attic fire at 8153 So. Stewart Avenue. While battling the blaze, he collapsed due to smoke inhalation.”

On 6/26/1964 a Brooklyn, Bedford - Stuyvesant, New York (FDNY) firefighter “lost his life while fighting a four-alarm fire in an abandoned school. The three-story brick building was built in 1856 and was abandoned by the Board of Education in 1960. The members of Squad 3, on the third floor, were pulling ceilings down when a large section of it collapsed, trapping them. He was pinned under the ceiling. He was pulled out and a doctor performed an emergency tracheotomy on him before he was taken to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.”

On 6/26/1971 a District of Columbia (Washington DC) firefighter died while “operating on the scene of a 4-alarm blaze at box 298, 472 L Street NW when he was struck and killed by debris from a sudden wall collapse.”

On 6/26/1984 a Scott, Mississippi firefighter died after “a truck with a 45-foot crane boom had come in contact with an overhead high-voltage line and caught fire. Firefighters made quick work of the blaze with one line and began to overhaul. The firefighter went to raise the hood of the truck and the boom again came in contact with the still-live wire, sending a live charge through him and knocking him to the ground. The live power line then fell into the same puddle of water that he was lying in. Another firefighter was also shocked, but he was knocked clear of the truck. All efforts to revive the firefighter proved fruitless.”

On 6/26/1988 a fire leveled “a block-and-a-half area of the prosperous downtown including many historic buildings in what became known as The Great Perkasie Fire. High winds and intense heat contributed to making this fire the worst fire in Perkasie, and Upper Bucks County, Pennsylvania history. The massive fire was started by two 12-year-old boys who were playing with a lighter near the coal bins behind the Shelley & Sons lumberyard at Seventh and Market Streets. The fire was fought by about 300 firefighters who came from over 50 fire companies in three counties. Among the historic buildings lost were the American House and the Moyer-Kantner Funeral Home, both dating from 1870; the Herstine Building; and the J.G. Moyer Building. Despite the size of the fire, no fatalities were reported. There was an estimated $9 million in damage from the fire. The blaze was ruled arson and five charges were made against the two boys.”

On 6/26/1990 six Tonto National Forest, Arizona firefighters died while cutting a firebreak at a lightning-sparked wildfire. “They were killed when a dry lightning storm occurred, and high winds suddenly pushed a wave of fire down onto them. The crew was killed due to smoke inhalation and burns when they were overrun by the wildfire which was at 50% containment at the time.”

On 6/26/2011 a Kissimmee, Florida six-alarm hotel fire left at least 150 residents without a home at the Vacation Lodge, 7514 West Irlo Bronson Highway, near Disney's Animal Kingdom that started around 10:45 p.m. Six people were transported to Celebration Hospital suffering from smoke inhalation. The fire started in a room that extended to the attic of the wooden structure built in 1983 that was destroyed and damaged an adjoining restaurant.

On 6/26/1996 a fire in the United States Treasury Building damaged 8,300 square feet of the roof structure during re-roofing operations. “Several dry chemical fire extinguishers were discharged on the fire, helping to limit the spread of the fire over the surface of the roof.?The fire, however, continued to burn in the inaccessible combustible void space underneath the roof.”

On 6/26/1942 the New Prospect House Hotel a 100-room, six-story frame building on Long Island, New York Shelter Island, was destroyed by fire.

On 6/26/1921 a Hampton Beach, New Hampshire fire destroyed over twenty houses.

On 6/26/1921 the Atlanta (Georgia) Georgia Hotel was destroyed by fire.

On 6/26/1910 in Seneca Falls, New York the Seneca House Hotel fire killed three.

On 6/26/1909 the Mount Hope, New York Mountain View Hotel was destroyed by a fire that started about 8:30 p.m. from a defective chimney and extended to the building. “Several summer visitors at the hotel saved most of their effects and sought shelter in nearby farmhouses.”

On 6/26/1908 a saloon fire started around 2:00 a.m. and extended to two buildings in Spooner, Wisconsin

On 6/26/1807 lightning hit a gunpowder factory in the small European country of Luxembourg, killing more than 300.

On 6/26/2008 the Supreme Court affirmed the 2nd Amendment in D.C. v. Heller.

On 6/26/1963 President Kennedy claimed solidarity with the people of Berlin "Ich bin ein Berliner"?

On 6/26/1956 Congress approved the Federal Highway Act for the construction of some 41,000 miles of interstate highways.

On 6/26/1945 the Charter for the United Nations was signed in San Francisco.

On 6/26/1917 the 1st U.S. troops arrive in France.

On 6/26/1848 the 1st pure food law was enacted in the U.S.?

On 6/26/1498 the toothbrush was invented.

On 6/26/1284 the Pied Piper lured away 130 children in Hamelin, Germany.