S.C. warehouse fire kills 9 firefighters

[CuriousAnne]

http://www.thestate.com/426/story/96840.html

This article has a slideshow and pictures of all of the firemen who died.

Nine men, nine stories

http://www.thestate.com/154/story/96783.html

The nine Charleston firefighters who died Monday night were tough, seasoned veterans. Assistant Chief Larry Garvin, who was the first firefighter inside the building, said it was “the fastest-moving fire I’ve ever seen in 34 years on the job.”

Garvin said his men are grieving over the loss of their comrades. “We all held each other and cried last night, and we did it again today.”

CAPT. WILLIAM ‘BILLY’ HUTCHINSON

“The last thing Billy said to me was ‘Where’s the fire?’” said Garvin. “He went in the back and that was the last time I saw him.”

Hutchinson, 48, with 30 years in the department, was an elder of the Charleston Fire Department. Outside his department duties, he owned a barber shop in north Charleston.

“He’d cut firemen’s hair for a couple of bucks,” Garvin said. “His nickname was Lightning. They gave him that because he never seemed to get in a hurry. But last night, he was moving fast. We’ll sorely miss him.”

 

[CuriousAnne]

http://www.charleston.net/photos/2007/jun/19/1087/

A very detailed map and timeline from charleston.net.

 

[Kabby]

so so so very sad - my thoughts and prayers are with all the families - these firefighters have made us proud.

 

[southcitymom]

http://www.thestate.com/426/story/96840.html

This article has a slideshow and pictures of all of the firemen who died.

Nine men, nine stories

http://www.thestate.com/154/story/96783.html

The nine Charleston firefighters who died Monday night were tough, seasoned veterans. Assistant Chief Larry Garvin, who was the first firefighter inside the building, said it was “the fastest-moving fire I’ve ever seen in 34 years on the job.”

Garvin said his men are grieving over the loss of their comrades. “We all held each other and cried last night, and we did it again today.”

CAPT. WILLIAM ‘BILLY’ HUTCHINSON

“The last thing Billy said to me was ‘Where’s the fire?’” said Garvin. “He went in the back and that was the last time I saw him.”

Hutchinson, 48, with 30 years in the department, was an elder of the Charleston Fire Department. Outside his department duties, he owned a barber shop in north Charleston.

“He’d cut firemen’s hair for a couple of bucks,” Garvin said. “His nickname was Lightning. They gave him that because he never seemed to get in a hurry. But last night, he was moving fast. We’ll sorely miss him.”

Thank you for this link. That slide show made me weep.

 

[CuriousAnne]

911 calls show fire started near store's rear deck

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/06/21/charleston.fire.ap/index.html

CHARLESTON, South Carolina (AP) -- Passing motorists and a store worker frantically called authorities about a fire behind a furniture store the night nine firefighters perished inside, according to 911 tapes and transcripts released Thursday.

An employee said the area was where workers took smoke breaks.

While federal investigators probing the blaze have not confirmed where the Monday night fire started, recordings of some of the 10 calls bolster what several city fire officials have said: The fire apparently started at the back of the store in a covered space between the showroom and a warehouse crammed with furniture.

"I'm at Sofa Super Store on Highway 17. There's a huge fire in the back of the warehouse," one male caller said. It appeared that "a little shed" was on fire, he said.

In another call, a woman told the dispatcher that she was at the store and "the back of the building is on fire, yes ma'am."

More at link

 

[CuriousAnne]

http://www.charleston.net/news/2007/jun/22/new_york_bagpipe_corps_join_memorial_heroes/

The pipe and drum corps that played at each funeral for the 343 firefighters killed on 9/11 in New York will be called to duty today when the musicians play during a memorial service for the nine Charleston firefighters killed in Monday's furniture store blaze.

Thirty-five members of the New York City Fire Department Emerald Society Pipes and Drums bagpipe band took a 15-hour bus trip Thursday to be here for the 10 a.m. service. Band members are expected to be among 200 New York City firefighters at the memorial ceremony.

More at link

 

[CuriousAnne]

http://www.wcsc.com/
click on "Click here for live online coverage of Friday's 10AM Memorial Service. "

 

[Masterj]

http://www.charleston.net/news/2007/jun/22/new_york_bagpipe_corps_join_memorial_heroes/

The pipe and drum corps that played at each funeral for the 343 firefighters killed on 9/11 in New York will be called to duty today when the musicians play during a memorial service for the nine Charleston firefighters killed in Monday's furniture store blaze.

Thirty-five members of the New York City Fire Department Emerald Society Pipes and Drums bagpipe band took a 15-hour bus trip Thursday to be here for the 10 a.m. service. Band members are expected to be among 200 New York City firefighters at the memorial ceremony.

More at link

That certainly brings back memories. My old office was on Fifth Avenue by St. Patrick's Cathedral. It was so hard returning to work after 9/11. Everyday we would hear the bagpipes playing for someone's funeral. I can't listen to them anymore without sobbing and remembering that. I felt terrible going about my day at work for something that certainly wouldn't change the world while those incredible men and women were being honored for their heroism.

 

[CuriousAnne]

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070622/D8PU3R5O1.html

NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. - Fire Capt. Ken Dammand stood sharply in his dress uniform, his eyes reddening, as the families of nine dead firefighters filed past him and into a packed coliseum for their memorial service Friday.

"These people are dealing with a mountain of grief," said Dammand, who worked his shift in Everett, Wash., and went 40 hours without sleep to make it to South Carolina for the ceremony. "If we can take on some of that, that's why we're here."

Dammand and a colleague from his city north of Seattle were among thousands of firefighters who traveled from across the country to mourn the Charleston firefighters killed in a furniture store blaze Monday night. It was the worst single loss of U.S. firefighters' lives since the Sept. 11 attacks.

They traveled to a region that normally draws out-of-towners to its beaches and historical landmarks, but where city offices were closed Friday as piles of flowers and cards and remembrances of the slain men have grown over the past four days.

More at link

 

[CuriousAnne]

http://www.charleston.net/news/2007/jun/28/site_be_sacred_memorial/

A park with a memorial to honor the Charleston firefighters killed June 18 will rise from the ashes of the Sofa Super Store on Savannah Highway, Mayor Joe Riley said Wednesday.

"The land is sacred. Nine courageous firefighters lost their lives there. It will be kept sacred," Riley said at a City Hall press conference.

More at link.