No rest for 'Midnight Express'
by DAVID F. SHERMAN of Beenews.com
Editor, Fire Fighter Newspaper Buffalo, N.Y.

One of Washington D.C.'s best-know fire buffs was asleep on the couch in the back of the
firehouse at 13th and L streets NW when the scratchy radio call came over the tattered brown
speaker above his head.
"Fourteen engine's got a fire!" he said as he sprang to life, whirling to his right, and was out the
double doors to the engine room and the street beyond where his SUV was parked.
He might be telepathic, but he missed the original call over the DC fire radio.   Fourteen was
responding on the standard "Working Fire Dispatch" transmitted to fill in the initial assignment
for a structure fire; a nominal procedure in the nation's capitol. He's good, and seldom misses a
job.
The sixth battalion chief from the firehouse had also responded, and it was a fairly long haul
across town to the fire on New York Avenue in the city's northeast district.  Gone are the days
when visitors would be granted permission to ride along on DCFD fire apparatus, the courtesy
falling victim to privacy concerns surrounding any persons the firefighters might care for in the
line of duty.
"Grocery store," said the buff a short time later when he returned, a tinge of disappointment in his
voice that the blaze had not been bigger.  Our conclusion that the outcome was hardly worth the
effort to speed through the city under darkness to see the effects of fire in a two-story building no
bigger than a carriage house.
A DCFD ambulance crew returning to service had discovered the fire while returning from a
hospital run.
Sometimes, these as the majority of the calls answered by the firefighters of the "Midnight
Express."
Once a hotbed of fire activity in the city's central, downtown district, the 75-year-old quarters of
Engine 16, Tower 3 and Battalion Chief 3 is much quieter these days. However, you couldn't tell
that from the run statistics.
According to the firehouse's Web site, Engine 16 has soared to the fourth busiest engine company
in Washington with 5,918 responses in 2005-06.  Tower 3 is tops among truck companies with
3,271 runs during the same time period.
It should be noted that 16 is a paramedic engine company and is stocked with a full compliment
of advanced life support equipment.   Each shift includes a firefighter/paramedic, allowing the
crew to provide first responder care while awaiting arrival of an ambulance.
Additionally, the truck may be sent out on more "routine" medical calls when the engine is out.
So a half-million dollar Aerialscope - the only tower in a densely-populated urban environment -
rolls to reports of an "ill person" or "the unknown medical."
The neighborhood has changed a lot during the past 15 years. More and more condominiums are
being built in the center of the city, displacing storefronts, bars and parking lots. Gone too are the
hookers, who once stood ready for business each night at nearly every corner within sight of the
firehouse.
Sixteen's quarters is a firefighter's firehouse, complete with brass poles, a spacious "sittin' room"
off the kitchen and an ornately-painted wooden bench outside.   Visitors can hang out with the
crew indoors or out, attempt to catch a nap upstairs in the bunk room, or watch baseball on a big
screen TV.

But step back when the bell rings.
The man on night watch has the pleasure of waking up the whole house when the chief, engine or
tower is alerted. His weapons of choice are a metal gong, the ability to pipe the dispatcher's radio
voice throughout the building and a microphone that allows him to bellow anything from the
simple "engine - medical" to the ominous "everybody!"
The routine nature of the job in D.C. was shattered within a few hours on Monday, April 30.
The 144-year-old Eastern Market at 7th and C Street in the city's southeast section was destroyed
in a three-alarm fire.
According to Alan Etter, public information officer for DC Fire/EMS, units reported heavy fire
showing from the one-story 100 x 200 feet long building.   As firefighters were attempting to
attack the fire, it extended in the attic and started to travel the length of the building.
With heavy fire conditions throughout the building, Second Battalion Chief R.E. Ridgeway called
a second alarm and a few minutes latter a third alarm, bringing more than 170 firefighters to the
scene. At one point firefighters had to be removed from the building and fought the fire from the
outside using four ladder pipes and several hand lines.
The buildings are located on land that was designated for market use during Thomas Jefferson's
presidency. The older of the two structures has served as a market building continuously since
1873.
Less than 12 hours after the Eastern Market blaze was reported, firefighters were called to battle a
three-alarm fire at Georgetown Library at Wisconsin Avenue and R Street northwest.
Etter said crews attempted to make an aggressive attack on the fire but were forced out of the
building due to the strong possibility of a collapse.
The building was not outfitted with a sprinkler system.
Acting Fifth Battalion Chief Harry Subacz eventually called a third alarm as dormers and a
cupola collapsed through the roof of the 100-foot-long building.
Etter said a crew doing renovation work at the library were using a heat gun to remove paint
when the fire broke out. They did not call 911 for at least 10 minutes while they tried to put out
the flames by themselves.
The fire claimed rare books, paintings, maps and historical documents. Return Home