The tones dropped. "Station 51, Station 110, Truck 110, House fire, 1138 Beverley." They barely waited for the rest of the assignment before all six men were moving. At the words "house fire" the sense of urgency grew. At 2pm on a Sunday afternoon it was unfortunately all too likely that there would be people trapped.
Captain Stanley's long legs meant that he missed being clipped by the Squad as they pulled out, and he had to move smartly to climb into the already moving Engine after taking and acknowledging the call. He could have said something to Mike, but knew that his Engineer knew how close the Captain had been and also knew that Mike would not have touched him with the huge rig.
Besides, if he wasn't able to get round the Engine and board her fast enough, then he wasn't fit enough to be in his job any more.
Still, playing "chicken" with Big Red was not something he planned to do on a regular basis. Cap made a note to have a word with both Mike and Roy when they returned about safety on leaving the barn, and that they had to wait until their Captain had cleared each vehicle before moving. Maybe even pop in a reminder if he was out injured because of their actions, he'd make damn sure that Hookraider would replace him.
They turned a corner and could see the header from the fire and the smoke had that tinge to it that spoke of chemical and heavy structural involvement. Great. This one was probably going to be a gonner before they even started to put water on it. He raised the radio to his lips. "Engine 51 to all responding to Beverley fire. SCBA to be used. Suspected chemical involvement. Squad 51, wait until water backup before entering." Mike pulled in smoothly, and they felt the movement of hose as it was pulled off the bed and Mike then pulled forward, secure that Johnny would set up the hydrant to feed water to those attacking the fire.
Cap was out of the Engine almost before Mike stopped, his two linemen on his heels and finishing fastening their own SCBA gear even as he put his on. A comprehensive look helped him to sum up the situation and decide what was needed.
"Marco, Chet, pull an inch and a half and back up Roy and Johnny." He searched for any signs that the houses occupants were out and saw a small group huddled on the grass as far away from the house as they could get.
Long strides covered the ground to five people who looked rather the worse for wear. Evidence that they had escaped after the fire had taken hold was all over them. "Is there anybody inside?"
A man about his own age tried to speak and coughed, and resorted to shaking his head. "HT-51 to all 51 – the house is cleared. Roy, John, we have victims here. Marco, Chet, pull an additional two and a half and start hitting this from the east. Station 110, come in and hit from the west. Truck 110 let's get somebody up and hit that top floor and start ventilating those windows. LA – this fire is fully involved. Stand by for possible second alarm."
He turned again to the householders and saw that the man was breathing easier. "What happened here?"
"I don't quite know. I heard my daughter scream, and then my son yell and then there was an explosion and fire."
Hank frowned. "Where were they?"
"In the dining room. Cissy and my wife were taking down the curtains to wash. I'd gone upstairs to bring down the baby and had just come into the room when it happened. I handed the baby to my son and helped my wife to try to put it out, but it got away from us and we all got out."
OK thought Hank. Wife and Cissy. He turned to the teenage girl and older woman, both of whom were being treated by Roy for burns on their arms and hands. "So, can you ladies tell me what happened."
Cissy looked up, her eyes red. "Well," she said in a small voice, "there was this spider…"