Firefighters from five area towns quickly contained a structure fire at 90 Rockland Rd. (Rt. 17) in Whitefield Dec. 28.
Whitefield Fire Chief Tim Pellerin said firefighters were able to rapidly extinguish the blaze due to their mastery of mutual aid procedures. “I am real proud of the guys, they did a great job,” Pellerin said.
Flames were visible outside the small residence by the time the first truck reached the scene shortly after 8 p.m., Pellerin said. Firefighters were able to clear the scene by 11:30 p.m.
“First truck in had (sic) fire coming out of the windows on the first floor,” Pellerin said. “Initial crews did an aggressive interior attack. Two lines knocked it down real quick. Next, two teams in from Jefferson, and a second crew from Whitefield went to the second floor and stopped the spread up there. They vented the roof and I think we got it stopped in a pretty good location (sic).”
A tenant of the property woke up smelling smoke and observed flames in the area of the kitchen cabinets, Pellerin said. He was able to escape quickly and call for help. There were no injuries at the scene.
Fire damage was limited to the kitchen and living room on the first floor. Pellerin said firefighters used about 325 gallons of water in the effort.
The State Fire Marshal determined discarded smoking materials were a likely cause of the fire, Pellerin said.
Pellerin said mutual aid response worked exactly like it was supposed to at the scene. He credited the department’s extensive mutual aid training.
“For us it was a textbook fire,” Pellerin said. “The crews got in, did exactly what we been training for the last couple years to do. Everything just clicked; no yelling, no hollering. (Whitefield Deputy) Chief (Scott) Higgins took control of operations. Wally Morris, Chief of Jefferson, took water supply and everybody just went to work. Everybody did what they were supposed to do; pull the hoses, put the fire out.”
Firefighters from Windsor, Somerville and Jefferson assisted Whitefield at the scene. Alna provided Whitefield with station coverage.
The Farmingdale Fire Dept. responded with a rescue unit outfitted with 8000-kilowatt lights, which illuminated the scene, providing a significant help for the local responders Pellerin said.
