Sitting around the firehoust dinner table recently, our discussion turned to attic fire horror stories. What was truly scary was that virtually everyone had a story to share (photo 1). I reflected back when, as a fairly new firefighter, I arrived on the scene of a medium-sized home with a working attic fire. I recalled that interior conditions presented very light smoke hovering at the ceiling level. Within minutes, we pulled huge amounts of ceiling and operated nozzles as we worked to put the fire out. Well, the fire went out, but it was discouraging to see the amount of damage that we had done to the home's interior and its contents. I struggled with determining which caused more damage-the fire or the firefighters (photo 2). Fortunately, I would learn from other company officers and experienced firefighters that we can do it differently and that we can have a positive impact on an already tragic situation.
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