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The Proud Home of Company 2 |
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PRESS RELEASE
Date: October 28, 2007 To: Area Press From: Larry W. Couch, Fire Chief Re: Fire Leaves Resident Homeless
According to officials; Mr. Beegle, who was asleep in a room adjacent to his kitchen, stated that he was woke up because he was choking, he said that the fire he encountered in his kitchen was already reaching the ceiling from his stove-top and a fire extinguisher that he had failed to operate. Fire officials also located a smoke detector, with no battery in it, on the second floor.
This was our second call, in the early morning hours of Sunday that resulted from a misuse or lack of attendance to an appliance said Fire Chief, Larry Couch. We know accidents like this will happen, but Mr. Beegle is very lucky to be alive, if he would not have awoken when he did, I’m very confident he would have succumbed to the fire which gutted 2-rooms of the lower level of the home and left the rest of the home with heavy smoke and heat damage.
I would like to reiterate what we always try to instill in residents and children that we put through our prevention programs and that is that proper use and care, when using temporary appliances and cooking equipment are essential to their overall safety, Couch said.
The first late Saturday, early Sunday call to the fire department came to the New Martinsville Police Department from 570 Urban Street at 11:33 PM Saturday. Residents reported an electrical fire in the home. Arriving fire department units found a portable space heater, that was apparently being used as a primary heating source in the home, which had a burned plug end. Fire fighters checked the wall of the home for any extension into the walls of the home, disconnected the wall outlet and removed the damaged space heater, no extinguishment was required. The fire department responded to this call with Engines 202, 207 and 209 with 9-personnel and were assisted at the scene by New Martinsville Police Department. All personnel left the scene of this call at 12:08 AM.
The second call was received by Wetzel County 911 dispatchers at 3:27 AM from the neighbor to Mr. Beegle, who stated that she could see the fire in the kitchen area and that area appeared to be fully involved in fire.
NMVFD Engines 202 and 207 arrived on the scene simultaneously at 3:47 AM and encountered heavy fire in the living area and kitchen of the lower level of the home. Crews, led by Captain Cris Jenkins, and composed of Fire Fighters Eric Smith, Rocky Hall, Jeff Amos and Michael Smith advanced an attack line into the fire area and were able to bring the fire under control in 20-minutes.
The home had extreme heat and smoke levels on both the fire floor and the second floor, We were very concerned about the high heat and smoke levels and the possibility of the fire “flashing-over” so we had to be quite aggressive in our ventilation efforts of the structure, to keep that from happening, Couch said.
Mr. Beegle was taken by New Martinsville Police Department, to stay with a friend. The Red Cross was notified as well as other charitable groups to help Mr. Beegle with his initial, immediate, needs, Couch said.
Damages to the Apple Street home were estimated to be $30,000 and the initial cause of the fire was being listed as “Un-Attended Cooking”. There were no injuries. Engines 202, 207 and 209 along with Operations 201, and a total of 12-personnel responded to the call, assisted by Paden City Engine 5, Rescue 6 and Communications 7 with several fire fighters.
New Martinsville Fire Fighters were also assisted at the scene by Wetzel County EMS Personnel, City Electric, and the New Martinsville Water & Sewer Department.
The NMVFD responded to at least 4-other calls during this past weekend, keeping the volunteers quite busy. PRESS RELEASE Date: April 22, 2007 New Martinsville Police and Fire Departments, along with members of the West Virginia Fire Marshal’s Office and West Virginia State Police descended on the New Martinsville Public Library late Sunday Afternoon, after a suspicious device was found in the Library’s Book Drop. One of the librarians was gathering books from the deposit when she noticed a suspicious package in the deposit box, removed the package and notified authorities at 4:29 PM, said Fire Chief, Larry Couch. Due to the nature of the package and suspicions around its placement, we took no chances and notified the Fire Marshal’s Office and the State Police Bomb Squad, after and extensive investigation of the package, it was removed from the building where additional samples and information could be gathered. The area around the Library was sealed-off while the investigation and removal of the device took place. We refuse to become complacent, said Couch. The large scope of the incident went very well, very quiet, with little recognition that kept the public safe and away from the incident, and produced a lot of good information for a follow-up investigation, including video surveillance, that may prove to be most useful in the investigation, Couch said. While, at this time, it appears to be a hoax, there are very serious consequences to placing a hoax device, Couch said. Police Chief, Tim Cecil and his officers along with the Fire Marshal’s Office will work together on the investigation. Samples and information gathered at the scene were being transported to Charleston, Sunday Evening, for Lab analysis, and the Police Department, with its new video enhancement equipment, will be analyzing the digital surveillance video, Couch said.
Press Release Date:
September 15, 2007
Three New Martinsville Fire Fighters have been honored for their bravery, and exceptional duty as a result of their saving of a man in an apartment fire in February of this year. The honor was given to the 3-men at the West Virginia Firemen’s Associations Convention held at Oglebay Park on Friday, September 14, 2007. Fire Fighters, Michael Owens and Tim Pugh, under the direction of Captain Cris Jenkins were the first crew to arrive on the 4th Floor of the Towers Apartment Complex on that snowy February night. The crew initially found light smoke in the hallway outside of the apartment where the smoke alarm had been activated. These men recognized that an uncontrolled fire could be raging in the apartment behind the closed door, they quickly effected an evacuation of the fourth floor to protect the remaining occupants and then force entry into the apartment. Once inside the crews encountered heavy smoke conditions from floor to ceiling and they initiated a search for any occupants. During a rapid initial search of the apartment, they found the occupant unresponsive, seated at his dining table in the smoky environment, said New Martinsville Fire Chief, Larry Couch. The Fire Fighters, carried the man from the 4th floor, down the fire escape, to an awaiting ambulance in the parking lot of the complex. The male victim was transported to Wetzel County Hospital by Wetzel County EMS, where he was treated for smoke inhalation and released the next morning. After rescuing the victim, the initial crew, along with now arriving additional crews, extinguished a small fire in the apartment kitchen, they proceeded with the process of smoke removal and an accounted for all of the occupants of the complex, most of which had evacuated to the Lobby of the building. The call was received by the department at 10:53 PM that evening, in response to a 911 call from building occupants that reported smoke coming from Apartment 429, along with an activated smoke detector in the apartment. To be chosen as the recipients from a crowd of more than 420-fire departments, and some 9,000 fire fighters in the state that answer thousands of calls for help each year, is truly an honor. These three are truly humbled by the whole experience, they are quite modest about the whole thing Couch said. They exemplify all of the Volunteer men and women of the New Martinsville Fire Department and their duty with honor, courage, discipline and forward thinking. “ I am truly proud of these three, as I am all of our members Couch said. The initial call for this fire was dispatched by Wetzel County 911 at 10:53 PM with the first truck responding at 10:56 PM and arriving on the scene at 11:00 PM. The fire department responded with: Operations-201, Ladder-203, Engine-202, Squad-206, Engine-207 and 19-Fire fighters. Damage was contained to the Kitchen of the apartment and was very light, there was moderate smoke damage to Apartment 429, as well as its two neighboring apartments, total damage was estimated at $1,000.00. The fire was been ruled accidental, as a result of un-attended cooking. New Martinsville Fire Fighters were assisted by Wetzel County EMS, as well as the Paden City Volunteer Fire Company, Sardis and Clarington Fire and EMS. A West Virginia State Fire Marshal also responded to the call.
Press Release Date:
September 17, 2007
With a long dry spell during the summer and fall just ahead, one area fire department approaches the up-coming Forest Fire Season with a new level of confidence in its ability to help access and control those future fires. We work hard at trying to let people know the dangers of out-door burning and careless burning during peak periods when the forest are susceptible to the effects of fire, said New Martinsville Fire Chief, Larry W. Couch. But every year the department encounters wildland fires, and the overwhelming number of those fires are directly related to careless burning or smoking. We don’t typically see the number of “set” fires that they do in Southern WV, which is also plagued by “coal seam fires” that result in forest fires, Couch said. The department is now better equipped to gain access to these often rugged areas where the fire’s or emergencies exist. The department has purchased 2-ATV’s to improve its quickness and ability to get to these fires. One of the ATV’s is a 22-HP, 4-wheel drive, Club Car, with a 75-Gallon tank, 120-gallon per minute fire pump, Hoses, and a rescue rack to carry victims from isolated areas using its ¾ ton payload. The ATV is capable of reloading its water supply at nearly any static source such as a pond, creek, stream, pool, or river and has a completely enclosed cab. The second ATV is a 2-wheel drive, with a 20-gallon tank, with pump and hand wand, a large cargo compartment and towing abilities. We have had the ATV’s since early this summer and have found them to be incredibly versatile and suited for all sorts of responses and duties. The department has invested nearly $15,000 in this equipment, obtaining the vehicles for nearly ½ of their market cost. It will now be much easier for us to transport equipment, personnel, supplies and victims in areas where it would previously have taken extensive time and man-power to accomplish the same duties. The New Martinsville Department has made its neighboring agencies aware of these new vehicles and their capabilities and offers them, as they do any of their equipment, in times of need and as a part of their Mutual Aid Agreements. |
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Stephen
Beegle of New Martinsville was left homeless after an early morning fire left
his home un-inhabitable. The house, located at 554 Apple Street, in the
downtown section of New Martinsville was partially gutted by Sunday morning
blaze, according to fire officials.
