Day 23, April 4, 2009

I didn’t monitor over night (I don’t wake up for anything anymore like I used to), but LA City had a working fire this morning around 0730 hours in the 1900 block of Sunset Blvd. Sent were Task Force 20, RA20, Light Force 3, Engine 6, Engine 11, RA811 and Bn 11. I didn’t hear much more after TF20 reported smoke showing as I was in the process of cleaning up at the time.

Yesterday I stated something like “I’m not sure what LA City responds downtown” or something like that. EAA Member Joe Waters sent me an e-mail stating “FYI All LA City fire responses are based on the building occupancy and building size as this information comes from Fire Prevention and Public Safety Bureau.” Thanks for that Joe. Also yesterday I made an error when I said LA City has Lieutenants. They have Captains on the engines and Captain II’s on the ladder trucks. Captain II is a higher grade of pay.

I left the Extended Stay around 0900 hours and headed for the LA City Fire Museum at old LA City Station 27 in Hollywood. I actually arrived in the area earlier than I wanted to, as the museum doesn’t open up until 1000 hours (the traffic on the freeways was really light this morning). I drove by LA City Stations 20 and 35 on the way to see if any of the rigs were parked outside. No go.

The radio was going nuts this morning as there were drills going on all over the City of Los Angeles. I thought at first I was hearing fireground radio traffic, but I hadn’t heard anybody dispatched. LA City trains more than any department I’ve ever been to. There was a drill downtown, a parade downtown involving 2,000 people that had an EMS group assigned to it, and all kinds of other company drills going on. There was a working fire up in the valley somewhere on Hiawatha Court in Engine 88;s first due. Then there was a building collapse in LA City Engine 21’s area that got a huge response of apparatus, including USAR 88, Heavy Rescue 56 and USAR 5 (from LAX). One man was killed instantly when a garage collapsed on him (they were working on the foundation). Once they got him out from under the debris, they cancelled the rest of the assignment.

When they opened the doors at the museum I was greeted by two retired LA City firefighters. We had quite the chat. Retired LAFD driver Lee Keebler has a keen mind with just a wealth of information and history on the LAFD. We must have talked for at least an hour and a half about the LAFD organization and its transitions over periods of time. He is also still involved in the pension program and is right up to date on what’s going on with current firefighters and benefits. He had all the numbers on the total number of LAFD firefighters in recent times. Before Proposition 13 was passed in about 1978, LA City had 3500 firefighters. After Proposition 13, they were cut to 2700. Today’s strength stands at 4000, mainly due to the expansion of the paramedic (Rescue Ambulance) program. He told me that today LA City has 70 reserve rescue ambulances in their fleet.

We discussed the Task Force concept and he confirmed a lot of what I said yesterday. He credits Chief Hill with being a very intelligent Assistant Chief and Chief of Department. He told me that the National Fire Academy would have been in LA, except that the fire chief before Hill didn’t get along with the people organizing it. Lee said that if Raymond Hill had been chief at the time, the National Fire Academy would have been here.

We also discussed the “Class 1” LA City still carries on the doors of its apparatus. The last time the City of Los Angeles was rated was way back in 1952 and the city rated a Class 1, except in areas of the San Fernando Valley and areas in the San Pedro/Wilmington area. Lee told me that the City of Los Angeles will never be rated again. He said that in 1952, it took the crew of fire underwriters four more months than they had planned to rate the City of Los Angeles, which cost the insurance underwriters a lot of extra money. Today, the city must pay to have the underwriters do a survey and Lee said that would never happen.

Lee explained that there are all kinds of salary levels in the department. For example, firefighters who are paramedics make 30% more than regular firefighters. People who are USAR certified make extra money. Heavy Duty Task Force Capatin II’s get more (Station 9 is the only one now). And it goes on and on. I was surprised to find out that all the helicopter pilots are firefighters (but get more money for being pilots). I figured they had civilian pilots. During brush fires, the helicopter pilots can’t fly more than 8 hours and then must be off for 16 consecutive hours before they can fly again.

I asked Lee about the many Salvage Companies the city had in the 60s (I’ve got some old rosters and they had at least one per battalion and some had two). He said those were the predecessors to the Rescue Ambulances. He said that in the old days the Salvages had a full compliment of manpower. Then later as they added Salvages, they became two-man companies and carried resuscitators and responded to heart attacks, trouble breathing etc. Then, when the LAFD took over the ambulance operations from the City Hospital in the late 60s (they had operated ambulances in San Fernando Valley since the 50s), all of the two-man Salvages Companies were disbanded for the manpower for the ambulances. The three Salvages with full crews became Rescue Squads.

I could have talked to Lee all day, but he had other things to do. He told me that the museum owns 37 pieces of fire apparatus. They have added two interesting pieces to the museum (old Station 27) since I visited here two years ago. One is a 1937 ALF 1500/80 sedan pumper (old E67) and old Wagon 17’s 1966 Crown 2000/400 with the big Turret Gun with mounted seat.

Lee introduced me to retired LAFD firefighter Ed Humphrey. He told me that Ed had received the highest award the LAFD gives when he and another firefighter climbed the KTLA transmitter tower on Santa Monica Blvd to rescue a man trying to commit suicide many years ago. Ed and another firefighter climbed to the top of the tower and brought the man down. Then Lee told me that Ed had actually knocked the guy unconscious in order to rescue him, but Lee said that that detail was not contained in the official report of the incident. I laughed.

While I was visiting the museum, Engine 27 left quarters , but I was too slow to catch them. Later I heard Light Force 27 leaving Station 27 and got photos of them as they pulled away. It turned out that LF27, RA 27, and RA827 were headed a block away to do a drill in a parking ramp. When I looked out the window of the museum and saw them all parked with their red lights on, I walked over to see what was going on. They were raising the aerial up to one of the top floors and E227 was hooked up to a hydrant and had laid two lines into the standpipe system. They were embarrassed when they set the fire alarm off in the building. I must have sounded for 25 minutes before it was finally shut off.

I left the museum around 1300 hours and I headed out Santa Monica Blvd towards Santa Monica. I went by Beverly Hills Station 1, LA City Station 92, and Santa Monica Stations 1 & 3 hoping to see some rigs outside. All were tucked away in their quarters, with almost no chance of a shot. When I got to the Santa Monica Pier I drove out and parked on the pier. I spent two hours looking at all the vendors, shops, the thousands of tourists (I took two group photos for different groups of people that asked me to use their cameras to take their photo), and of course enjoyed the great scenery from the pier. They’ve added a bunch of new rides to the pier. I took a few photos and even had an ice cream cone.

I drove back through city streets all the way back to the Hollywood area on the way back and only caught LA City E59 out on the street. Traffic was very slow as I came in Sunset Boulevard and saw all of the hot spots (Whisky a Go Go and all the fancy eating spots) on the way back. LA County had a major freeway crash (they have lots of those) with a car over a cliff and they got s huge response on that incident. Just as I got back to my room, the tones started sounding (must have been 15 sets of tones or more) on the LA County dispatch for a reported brush fire along Tujunga Canyon Boulevard. LA County sent all kinds of apparatus including many Engines, Squads, Patrols, Water Tenders, Camp Crews, a Bulldozer, Bn Chiefs and a Helicopter (were all on the initial assignment). It turned out to be a small brush fire that was quickly contained and most of the companies were cancelled before they arrived.

It’s 1908 hours (here) and LA City & LA County (with a very similar huge response as above) both responded companies to the 118 Freeway and (I couldn’t make out the cross) for a reported brush fire. It was starting to get very windy out as I was returning to Arcadia. This must not have been much of a fire either as I’ve heard noting more on it. They initially send tons of apparatus on any reports of a brush fire out in this area. Better to have the help early and knock it down early.