After receiving a break for a few hours, Company 20 was back out the door Thanksgiving afternoon, as at 2:08 pm they were dispatched to a residential fire alarm on the 300-blk of Derwyn Rd. The Company investigated and found a problem with the alarm system. As units were clearing the scene, Fireboard alerted them to another first-due emergency, this time a fire alarm at the Drexeline Apartments, 4980 State Rd. There, crews found burnt food and returned to service within minutes.
About an hour later, at 3:54 pm, the bells sounded for another fire alarm in the first-due, at “G” building of the Creek Road Apartments, 3947 Dennison Ave. Engine 20-1 (D/C M. Morgan) arrived with nothing showing from the exterior. Upon entering the building and making the 2nd floor, 20-1’s crew found heavy smoke inside an apartment and a working fire in the bedroom. The assignment was then re-dispatched and upgraded to the working building fire. As 20-1 went in service with an 1 3/4″ handline and established a water supply, Tower 74 (Primos-Secane) arrived and began performing searches and evacuations throughout the building. Engine 36-2 (Cardington-Stonehurst) backed up 20-1’s crew with fire attack inside the apartment. Additional arriving units then went to work assisting with evacuations and ventilating the building. The fire was knocked by the first 10 minute mark and placed under control a short time later. Company 20 was on the scene for over an hour performing salvage and overhaul, before returning to service a little after 5 pm. This was Company 20’s 2nd working fire of the day and 8th run overall.
The Company would log Thanksgiving run #9 less than an hour later, as the Rescue was sent to the Kilgary Apts, 7022 Terminal Square in 37’s (Upper Darby) area for an elevator rescue. Fireboard advised there was a report of 5 people stuck in an elevator between the 4th & 5th floors. Rescue 20 stood-by on the scene as Engine 37 and Rescue 26 (Highland Park) investigated and were able to free the stuck occupants. THANKFULLY, pun intended, the Volunteers would be quiet for the rest of the holiday evening.
