February 6, 1932 LODD FF George L Byrne Queens Engine 301 FDNY

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mack

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February 6, 1931 - LODD
Fireman George L. Byrne - Engine 301
FDNY. Queens, New York

Fireman Byrne died of the injuries he sustained when he was responding to a call, when he was crushed between the wall doors and the apparatus. FF Byrne was mounting the apparatus when it was pulling out of quarters and was pinned between the apparatus and the firehouse door.

RIP. Never forget.
 
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This would be the quarters of Engine 301 and Ladder 150 in 1931 when FF Byrne was pinned against the apparatus door when leaving quarters. This former volunteer firehouse for Hollis Ladder 1 would have been tight quarters for the engine and truck.

Hollis Ladder 1.gif



Engine 301 and Ladder 150 moved into new quarters in 1933.

Hollis New FH.jpg
 
New quarters for E 301 and L 150 built on same location of original firehouse in 1933 - 2 years after FF Byrne's tragic accident. There is significantly more clearance in new quarters.

FH 9.gif
 
Final review of this LODD story.

E 301 and L 150 were quartered in an old volunteer firehouse - Hollis Ladder 1. The firehouse would have been cramped quarters for new FDNY engine and truck companies. It had a small apparatus door which would have provided minimal clearance for new motorized apparatus. The narrow apparatus door would have prevented the driver and officer from ensuring all members were aboard before moving the rig. The apparatus doors opened and closed external to the apparatus floor so they might have been in the process of being manually closed from the outside by other FFs. Lighting would have been poor. Conditions of the old apparatus floor are unknown. There would not have been signals to indicate to the driver and officer that all were aboard. Maybe the truck had to be parked close to the wall and the only way to mount was to be positioned near the door and then jump on the rig as it pulled out of quarters.

FF Byrne E 301 was probably trying to mount either the truck (L 150 detailed), lost his grip, was tragically pinned at the narrow doorway - and lost his life.

Engine 301 and Ladder 150 moved out of these old quarters less than a year after FF Byrne died and then returned to a modern firehouse (current quarters) with a wide apparatus door, more clearance and better lighting. Would FF Byrne have been crushed if he lost his grip after the new firehouse was built less than 2 years later?

That's probably all we can uncover and learn from FF Byrne's tragic accident - 90 years later.

God bless FF Byrne. RIP. Never forget.
 
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mack said:
February 6, 1931 - LODD
Fireman George L. Byrne - Engine 301
FDNY. Queens, New York

Fireman Byrne died of the injuries he sustained when he was responding to a call, when he was crushed between the wall doors and the apparatus. FF Byrne was mounting the apparatus when it was pulling out of quarters and was pinned between the apparatus and the firehouse door.

RIP. Never forget.
Click to expand...
RIP Brother, Never Forget.
 
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