Central Fire Department Update

From CFD

Photo: Ridgeside Fire, Saturday Night
    Generally a day in the life of the Central Fire Department starts at 7:00 a.m. with apparatus checks, station duties, commercial building inspections, training, and the normal allotment of emergency responses.  Some days are more busy than others and some calls are much more serious than others, but firefighters adapt to the lifestyle and are proud to provide service to the Central Fire District.  
    Last Thursday was a typical day until CFD was dispatched for a "car versus a house" in the 10300 block of West Brookside at 2:56 p.m.  The first engine company discovered a vehicle had struck a home in an area where the electricity and natural gas entered the residence.  While the driver had exited the vehicle uninjured prior to CFD's arrival, the driver left the engine running.  The force of the impact damaged the electrical system to the home and the natural gas line to the home was damaged and leaking. Luckily the residents were gone at the time of the accident. Unfortunately, natural gas from the broken gas line was seeping into the residence.  With the running vehicle resting on the leaking natural gas line and gas filling the home, an additional CFD engine company was dispatched to the scene as well as utility companies.
    As CFD crews were scrambling to control the situation on West Brookside, an alarm was received at 3:59 p.m. for a house fire in the 15800 block of Denham Road.  As responding companies pulled out of their stations, they realized their day was going from bad to worse as they observed heavy smoke in the distance.  On arrival, firefighters discovered a large outbuilding totally involved in fire near the main residence.  Central and District Six firefighters quickly controlled the blaze before it could spread to the main residence while Zachary firefighters served as the rapid intervention crew.  Since all five CFD stations were committed to active incidents, East Side and Baton Rouge Fire Departments covered two empty CFD stations.  There were no civilian or fire service personnel injuries at this incident and the building and its contents were a total loss.  The West Brookside incident was eventually controlled with damage to the home and vehicle, but no injuries and no fire.
    Saturday night at 9:54 p.m. CFD received an alarm for a house fire in the 15000 block of Ridgeside.  The first engine arrived on scene to find fire blowing out of windows from the kitchen area of the home.  The residents indicated all occupants were out of the home, however a small dog was missing and feared trapped inside.  Firefighters initiated an attack on the fire and simultaneously began searching for the missing dog.  The fire in the kitchen was quickly controlled, but as firefighters began pulling the ceiling, active fire was found in the attic as well. The attic fire was extinguished as search crews continued searching for the missing dog.  The kitchen was destroyed and the attic suffered heavy damage while the rest of the home suffered significant heat and smoke damage. The unresponsive dog was found behind a television, however firefighters were unable to revive him.
    The occupants indicated they had returned home and placed clothing they had just purchased on the kitchen stove.  Thinking the stove was off, the occupants exited the home and shortly thereafter noticed the fire. It is not known if a burner on the stove was accidentally left on prior to the the occupants placing the clothing on the stove or if the burner was unintentionally turned on when the clothes were placed on the stove.  CFD Captain Derek Glover cautions all Central residents to never assume stoves are turned off and to never use stove tops as storage areas.  There were no civilian or fire service injuries and District Six and East Side Fire Department assisted at the scene and covered an empty CFD station.