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Elderly Couple Killed In Early Morning Blaze
By JJohnson | March 8, 2010
At 2:30 am this morning, units from the Long Beach Fire Department responded to a smoke investigation call at the corner of 5th Street and Grand Avenue. Engine 4 was on scene within 2 minutes and reported heavy fire and smoke coming from both the front and side of the single story home. They quickly radioed to our dispatch and “Pulled the Hook” which is a term the LBFD uses to turn this incident a full structure fire response. Engine 4 kept the fire from spreading to the home next door while the other units arrived shortly after the call for additional resources was made. Engine 8 was next on scene along with Engine 2 and they began an aggressive fire attack and search for victims. Truck 1 along with Light Force 14 went to the roof to ventilate the house to make it easier for the crews down below. Rescue 14, Rescue 10 and Battalion 2 were also on scene.
Due to the time of the call, there was a greater risk of people inside sleeping or trapped. Crews did encounter “Pack-Rat” conditions which made extinguishment much more difficult. It took crews about 20 minutes to knock down the fire. Unfortunately there was an elderly male and elderly female who were rescued from the house, but were pronounced dead on scene. Also 1 cat died in this fire, but a dog who was taken by animal control appeared okay. There were 30 total firefighters involved with this fire. 1 firefighter injured his back, however his injuries didn’t require any medical care.
The fire is under investigation at this time.
Units on scene: E4, E2, E8, LF14, R14, R10, T1, BC2, PIO4
Topics: Incidents | 27 Comments »
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