My younger Buff years

[STAjo]

"Firefighters advised to look for: 
  - on arrival:  suspicious people and vehicles leaving vicinity; rapid extension of fire on arrival; explosions; odors; OOS hydrants; people arguing"....Back then this happened at most fires!!

It Seemed at the time; Every Fire was 10-41 (Suspicious), followed usually by:
'Rapid Extension on Arrival'

I heard this All the Time When listening in the 70's, and had some personal experience
when I was able to occasionally 'Visit' da 'Nuthouse' [214/111] & 255/157 [TL157 'Flatbush Trucking Co.' always makin' that Left out of the House against Rogers, Exciting Ride ! ],  in the 80's. TY, Men, for all the Great History Info !

( I Remember also:  249/113,  da' Jolly Rogers'...)  8)

 

[guitarman314]

Camp Rogers

 

[STAjo]

Camp Rogers

Right On ! [255/157]  TY, Gman ! 

 

[1261Truckie]

E-255/TL-157 = Jolly Rogers

E-249/L-113 = Camp Rogers Rats

 

[STAjo]

E-255/TL-157 = Jolly Rogers

E-249/L-113 = Camp Rogers Rats

Ty, Truckie ! All Very Confusing (Rogers...) and, My Memory izn't as Sharp...
What were we talkin' about again...  :

 

[1261Truckie]

STAjo,
I don't remember either.....wait a minute....are there firehouses on Rogers Avenue?....is that in Mr. Rogers neighborhood?...I'm so confused
Take care,
Jim Boyle (aka 1261truckie)

 

[guitarman314]

E-255/TL-157 = Jolly Rogers

E-249/L-113 = Camp Rogers Rats

Ty, Truckie ! All Very Confusing (Rogers...) and, My Memory izn't as Sharp...
What were we talkin' about again...  :

  Thanks 1261

 

[nfd2004]

Had an interesting conversation the other day with "G-man". Maybe before the actual War Years, but in growing up in the South Bronx he would often see (then) Engine 41 going over one of the bridges to a job in Harlem, with the guys riding the back step. One day he saw "41" going over that bridge. Then "42", then "43". He wondered what was going on because he didn't see any smoke.

  Turns out those companies were on their way to Staten Island for some major brush fires. Those guys riding the back step all the way. A pretty long ride is putting it mildly.

  Earlier there was mention of the Red Caps. I wish I could find my newsletters from the FDNY Bell Club. Once those added Fire Marshalls took to the streets, the next year multiple alarm fires dropped in half. It worked. However there were still a lot of serious fires and the work load had moved in the 80s west of Third Ave. 92/44, 48/56, 75/33, 68/49, E42, etc saw their area work load pick up, even with those added fire marshalls.

 

[mack]

Had an interesting conversation the other day with "G-man". Maybe before the actual War Years, but in growing up in the South Bronx he would often see (then) Engine 41 going over one of the bridges to a job in Harlem, with the guys riding the back step. One day he saw "41" going over that bridge. Then "42", then "43". He wondered what was going on because he didn't see any smoke.

  Turns out those companies were on their way to Staten Island for some major brush fires. Those guys riding the back step all the way. A pretty long ride is putting it mildly.

Bill - this is how members rode to fires up into the 1970s.  This is Engine 17 (disbanded) with 4 guys on the back step responding in 1970:


When Engine 17 went to SI, this is where the guys rode - back step:


All company members rode on the back step.  This is a busy brush fire day with Brooklyn and Manhattan (sometimes Bronx and maybe Queens) companies lined up at Engine 164:



Members had very limited protected seating.

 

[1261Truckie]

Look at "The Bronx Is Burning". E-82 has an enclosed cab Mack CF (I think a 1971) and when they respond the backstep is full.

 

[mack]

Look at "The Bronx Is Burning". E-82 has an enclosed cab Mack CF (I think a 1971) and when they respond the backstep is full.

 

[68jk09]

In the ENG*17 photo yes there a 4 FFs on the backstep but there is also a 5th IFO the jump seat behind the ECC so counting all including the ECC there are 6 FFs on board.... a big difference between then &  today w/4 FFs total regarding time spent getting a Line into operation & water on the Fire.........as far as the ENG*82 photo leaving qtrs there are 4 FFs on the backstep but i will bet there is at least one more in the jumpseat area plus the ECC again for a total of 6 FFs....even after Pumpers came into service equipped w/the front riding areas FDNY ENG FFs continued to  ride the Backstep....2 reasons ...1st a faster stretch on arrival especially if the ENG encountered the Fire bldg first.... FFs  after a quick stop in front of the bldg  would be already starting the stretch as the Officer jumped off the Rig & then the Rig could proceed to the hydrant  & 2nd being able to don coats while responding easier than sitting in a jump seat....when an ENG had a mid '50s Ward La France CD Pumper or former Co Rig as a spare there were no forward jump seats so the extra FF (& Auxiliaries if any ) would sit on top of the hosebed & hold onto the deckpipe (forerunner of the Stang/Multiversal).........sometime in the mid '70s riding the backstep was banned in the FDNY so busy ENGs w/6 FFs had to put a FF in the front seat between the Officer & the ECC which was a pain. 

 

[guitarman314]

  Tradition always prevailed as can be seen on the picture of L-108's 1956 LaFrance responding from quarters with members riding on the running board.

 

[nfd2004]

I would like to pass on a story I was recently told by one of the FDNY War Years Firefighters of The South Bronx. I think it gives a very good example of just how things were back in those FDNY War Years. Here's what he had to say:

QUOTE.. "There were 3 Four Alarm fires going a block apart, a few blocks from Engine 82/Ladder 31. It made the papers the next day. Seems that it was The Black Panthers making a statement. They set the three buildings up simultaneously and 82 rolled into the first one, a vacant "H". The next day we counted the windows where fire was showing on arrival. "A HUNDRED WINDOWS".
End of Quote.

  Let me add, that throughout the rest of the Bronx, or the entire city for that matter, the other fires were burning that day too. They didn't stop because this Bronx activity was going on. Harlem, the lower East Side, many, many parts of Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island continued to burn. So for those that were not around to witness this type of activity, you can understand, why chiefs had no idea who the responding companies were coming into jobs. Sometimes the first due came from a distance pretty far away. Simply put, "the fire statics for the FDNY War Years were staggering".

 

[nfd2004]

A quick story, not really about the many fires of the 70s and 80s but related to My Younger Buff Years. Back in the 1980s one of my favorite TV series was the Honeymooners. Actually the show was made in the 1950s about a city bus driver named Ralph Kramden, played by the late Jackie Gleason. I had found out that he actually grew up in a building at 327 Chauncey St in Brooklyn. And that is the location of where this bus driver named Ralph Kramden lived in the series. A poor blue collar neighborhood where the dads worked and moms stayed home with the kids. They struggled to have the basic everyday necessities, but somehow made it.

  By the 1980s, that neighborhood had become part of a huge ghetto area of Brooklyn. So on one of my buff trips, I decided to go check out where Jackie Gleason grew up as a kid. I had forgotten the exact number of the building, so I asked a few people in the street and they pointed to #327. It was occupied but I was the only tourist checking it out. It wasn't exactly the safest area to be in, but as buff, it was a good spot. So I got to see where that 50/60s movie star named Jackie Gleason grew up and the location where the TV series the Honeymooners was based on. And still be in an active area to chase fires.

  I was recently looking at a map of Brooklyn online. There was a section that directed you to real estate adds in the areas of that neighborhood, so I decided to see what kind of bargains there are in the neighborhood. I noticed a two story private dwelling almost across the street at #944 Chauncey St selling for $999,000. Wow, I would have never guessed that. The way things were going there, I didn't think there'd be anything left standing. Probably a good reason why these buildings are still standing is because the members of the FDNY just know how to fight fires. They saved those buildings then and they save them now.

 

[69 METS]

A quick story, not really about the many fires of the 70s and 80s but related to My Younger Buff Years. Back in the 1980s one of my favorite TV series was the Honeymooners. Actually the show was made in the 1950s about a city bus driver named Ralph Kramden, played by the late Jackie Gleason. I had found out that he actually grew up in a building at 327 Chauncey St in Brooklyn. And that is the location of where this bus driver named Ralph Kramden lived in the series. A poor blue collar neighborhood where the dads worked and moms stayed home with the kids. They struggled to have the basic everyday necessities, but somehow made it.

  By the 1980s, that neighborhood had become part of a huge ghetto area of Brooklyn. So on one of my buff trips, I decided to go check out where Jackie Gleason grew up as a kid. I had forgotten the exact number of the building, so I asked a few people in the street and they pointed to #327. It was occupied but I was the only tourist checking it out. It wasn't exactly the safest area to be in, but as buff, it was a good spot. So I got to see where that 50/60s movie star named Jackie Gleason grew up and the location where the TV series the Honeymooners was based on. And still be in an active area to chase fires.

  I was recently looking at a map of Brooklyn online. There was a section that directed you to real estate adds in the areas of that neighborhood, so I decided to see what kind of bargains there are in the neighborhood. I noticed a two story private dwelling almost across the street at #944 Chauncey St selling for $999,000. Wow, I would have never guessed that. The way things were going there, I didn't think there'd be anything left standing. Probably a good reason why these buildings are still standing is because the members of the FDNY just know how to fight fires. They saved those buildings then and they save them now.

My Mom lived on that block as a youngster.

 

[nfd2004]

A quick story, not really about the many fires of the 70s and 80s but related to My Younger Buff Years. Back in the 1980s one of my favorite TV series was the Honeymooners. Actually the show was made in the 1950s about a city bus driver named Ralph Kramden, played by the late Jackie Gleason. I had found out that he actually grew up in a building at 327 Chauncey St in Brooklyn. And that is the location of where this bus driver named Ralph Kramden lived in the series. A poor blue collar neighborhood where the dads worked and moms stayed home with the kids. They struggled to have the basic everyday necessities, but somehow made it.

  By the 1980s, that neighborhood had become part of a huge ghetto area of Brooklyn. So on one of my buff trips, I decided to go check out where Jackie Gleason grew up as a kid. I had forgotten the exact number of the building, so I asked a few people in the street and they pointed to #327. It was occupied but I was the only tourist checking it out. It wasn't exactly the safest area to be in, but as buff, it was a good spot. So I got to see where that 50/60s movie star named Jackie Gleason grew up and the location where the TV series the Honeymooners was based on. And still be in an active area to chase fires.

  I was recently looking at a map of Brooklyn online. There was a section that directed you to real estate adds in the areas of that neighborhood, so I decided to see what kind of bargains there are in the neighborhood. I noticed a two story private dwelling almost across the street at #944 Chauncey St selling for $999,000. Wow, I would have never guessed that. The way things were going there, I didn't think there'd be anything left standing. Probably a good reason why these buildings are still standing is because the members of the FDNY just know how to fight fires. They saved those buildings then and they save them now.

My Mom lived on that block as a youngster.

  Garrett, "69METS", your mom then had no idea that she would live on the same block as a nationally known movie star. OR that she would have a husband (right ?) and a son, that would fight fires in that same very busy area.

 

[69 METS]

A quick story, not really about the many fires of the 70s and 80s but related to My Younger Buff Years. Back in the 1980s one of my favorite TV series was the Honeymooners. Actually the show was made in the 1950s about a city bus driver named Ralph Kramden, played by the late Jackie Gleason. I had found out that he actually grew up in a building at 327 Chauncey St in Brooklyn. And that is the location of where this bus driver named Ralph Kramden lived in the series. A poor blue collar neighborhood where the dads worked and moms stayed home with the kids. They struggled to have the basic everyday necessities, but somehow made it.

  By the 1980s, that neighborhood had become part of a huge ghetto area of Brooklyn. So on one of my buff trips, I decided to go check out where Jackie Gleason grew up as a kid. I had forgotten the exact number of the building, so I asked a few people in the street and they pointed to #327. It was occupied but I was the only tourist checking it out. It wasn't exactly the safest area to be in, but as buff, it was a good spot. So I got to see where that 50/60s movie star named Jackie Gleason grew up and the location where the TV series the Honeymooners was based on. And still be in an active area to chase fires.

  I was recently looking at a map of Brooklyn online. There was a section that directed you to real estate adds in the areas of that neighborhood, so I decided to see what kind of bargains there are in the neighborhood. I noticed a two story private dwelling almost across the street at #944 Chauncey St selling for $999,000. Wow, I would have never guessed that. The way things were going there, I didn't think there'd be anything left standing. Probably a good reason why these buildings are still standing is because the members of the FDNY just know how to fight fires. They saved those buildings then and they save them now.

My Mom lived on that block as a youngster.

  Garrett, "69METS", your mom then had no idea that she would live on the same block as a nationally known movie star. OR that she would have a husband (right ?) and a son, that would fight fires in that same very busy area.

Very true my friend ...

 

[nfd2004]

I remember the days of driving by one job to go to another. As we were headed to a job with numerous calls of an occupied building, we would look down the side street and see another job going in maybe a vacant building. We could see the bucket of a tower ladder knocking down a job in that vacant building. But that wouldn't be the job we were headed to. We'd be on our way to what sounded like a better job. If we had a first time visitor with us, he couldn't believe it that we are passing by one job to go to another. But that would happen.

  On the way, maybe Rescue 3 would pass by us leaving from that vacant job that we had just past. Sometimes we didn't need a map because we could see the smoke while on our way. If it was occupied, we'd see these guys really hustle. The aerial ladder and tower ladder would be going up. The Engine guys were grabbing their folds and going in. We could hear the handie talkies on our scanner. People trapped on the fire escape. Glass breaking. Everybody had a job to do and they didn't waste any time doing it.

  When all was said and done, I would sometimes have guys tell me things like, "it was the smoothest operation they ever saw". Any place else, it would have been newspaper front page headlines. "BUILDING FIRE - SEVERAL RESCUED". But not here. It was just a routine job that happens in the neighborhood. No newspaper reporters here talking to the chief about a possible cause or what it was like in the first few minutes of this fire.

  In the meantime, the vacant building fire that we rode by is now history. There will be no news coverage on that one either. That fire is over and nobody cares. 

  "Bxboro" was one of the guys who was with us. In fact, he was the one who reminded me of stories like this. Yes, we all still talk about those days. Any of us who saw it, still talks about it. I just don't see how we could ever see anything like it again. 

 

[*******]

Busy days, which I doubt will ever be experienced again. I received a copy of 1st issue 2014 WNYF. In this issue runs and workers for 2013 are listed. I see that 82 engine was number 25 in all-hands with 74 fires. I thought back to July 1975 when 82 for that one month (blue and red entries) had 210 structural fires with 205 hours of structural work. My guess would be that at least 100 or so of these were all-hands or greater. The busiest engine, 275, had 119 all-hands for the year 2013. 82 would average around 1800 workers a year with 1600 hrs of work time, blue entries only. Also at that time 82 was "forced" to interchange every other night to either 295 or 297 engine, then, Sq.2 on the nights we didn't interchange would be first up for 82 from 1900 to 0100 hrs. Usually Sq. would catch a job early and then we were running 1st as we should have been every night. One can only imagine what those numbers would have been without interchange and Sq.