FROM: Jerry Hanson, Deputy Chief DATE: December 21, 2006
For Immediate Release: North Pole, Alaska.
The North Star Volunteer Fire
Department has been very busy recently responding to several building fires and
chimney fires, as well as smoke investigation situations involving a variety of
problems.
The most serious fire was a reported
building fire on Friday morning, December 15th, at 7:30 AM that
initially reported a man trapped in a residence on fire at 3057 VFW Street, off
of Laurance Road. The caller was
coughing and choking on smoke.
Firefighters from the North Star Volunteer and the North Pole Fire
Departments responded and arrived on scene within 6 minutes and found a
building fully involved in fire and all occupants safely out of the
building. No rescue was required and
the building occupant had minor burns on his hands. The building was an old travel trailer converted to a permanent
installation with additions built on to the trailer for a larger living
area. The building fire was reported to
have started after the occupant started a fire in the wood stove. He went outside and saw flames and embers
coming from the chimney stack and he went back inside to search for a pet
cat. The structure was destroyed and
the occupant, Burton James, was offered assistance by the Alaska Red Cross. Mutual Aid assistance was also provided by
the Fort Wainwright Fire Department. There
were no injuries as a result of this fire.
During the fire on VFW Street, at
8:52 AM, the North Star Volunteer Fire Department received a second call for a
possible wood stove chimney stack fire at 606 Bottles Street, off of Freeman
Road. NSVFD and Fort Wainwright FD
engines responded with the first units arriving in 6 minutes and found a
smaller building with a stack fire confined to the chimney pipe. The fire was extinguished and an inspection
confirmed there was no other damage to the building. The occupants were advised to not use the wood stove until the
pipe was inspected for damage and repaired if necessary.
A second serious residence fire was
reported on Wednesday evening, December 20th, at 8:28 PM, to the
area of 2472 Green Acres Drive, off of 7.5 Mile Chena Hot Springs Road. This area is a new addition to the North
Star Fire Service Area, and this is the first fire reported in this area since
the annexation. The North Star
Volunteer Fire Department, assisted by the Steese Area Volunteer Fire
Department, responded and was on scene within 14 minutes reporting a 30 foot
long 5th wheel type travel trailer set up as a residence, fully
involved in fire.
All the occupants were reported to be
out of the structure and this was confirmed by an inspection of the area after
the fire was out. There were several
small explosions as containers of various materials were ignited and ruptured,
and there was significant debris all over the area. The trailer was destroyed and the occupant, Ora L. Whittle, was
out of the building and not injured.
Additional assistance was provided by the Fort Wainwright Fire
Department, and there were no injuries as a result of this fire.
During the fire on Green Acres Drive,
a second possible building fire was dispatched at 9:30 PM to 2610 Stonecrest
Court, off of Larix Street, off of approx. 8 Mile Badger Road. A caller to 911 was reporting smoke in the
garage. The North Star Volunteer Fire
Department assisted by the Fort Wainwright Fire Department responded and was on
scene within 8 minutes reporting a large two story wood frame residence with
nothing showing on the outside. The
occupant said there was smoke in the garage and an investigation revealed a
malfunctioning boiler. The garage and a
living area on the second floor were ventilated and the boiler was shut down
until it can be repaired. The
occupants, Glenn and JoAnne Newtown and their teenage daughter were not injured
and there was no other damage to the building.
They have a second source of heat and were able to remain in the
structure.
The North Star Volunteer Fire
Department has also responded to several other calls for assistance with oil
fired heating systems and wood stove problems and carbon monoxide detectors
going off. The fire department has
investigated these problems and helped with solutions to the problems, and
installed new smoke and carbon monoxide detectors for free. NSVFD has an ongoing program of providing
and installing new smoke and/or carbon monoxide detectors, for free, as a community
prevention and education program. For
assistance, or if you have any questions, call the fire department at 488-3400.