Saturday, May 5, 2012  Engine Co. 45 and Truck Co. 20 were alerted to 9108 Carendon Ct for the house fire.  Engine Co. 45 and Chief 20 arrived to find a 1 story rambler with smoke showing.  Chief 20 setup command as 45 got a line into place and started knocking the fire.  Chief 45A arrived and was assigned saftey.  Truck Co. 20 arrived 2nd due special service and performed such duties.  Units were held to assist fire investigators.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012  At 1419hrs the box was dropped for " In the Area Of ' Marlboro Pike / Largo Rd for the house on fire.  Engine Co. 20 and Chief 20A arrived on scene with the corrected address of Buck Ln with a 1 story single family dwelling with fire throughout and in the attic.  The Engine Co. advanced a line and started to knock the fire.  As units arrived they assisted with various duties.  Chief 20 had DIV1 as the crew knocked the fire.

Thursday, April 12, 2012  Around lunch time Engine Co. 20 was alerted to 4819 King John Way for the house fire.  Chief and Engine Co. 20 arrived to find a 2 story single family dwelling with smoke showing.  The Engine Co. advanced a line to find a dryer fire with extension.  The fire was knocked within minutes and held with just Co. 20.

Sunday, April 8, 2012   AT 1445, PSCC received a call from Maryland State Police, who were reporting they were on the scene of a working house fire in the 7200 block of Crain Highway. Engine Co. 45, Tanker 45, and Engine Co. 20 were dispatched with the rest of the box alarm. Engine Co. 45 and Chief 20 arrived on scene with smoke showing from side D of a SFD cape cod. Chief 20 established command as 45's crew forced entry. Engine Co. 20 & 45 worked together to establish a water supply and advance the line to extinguish the fire. Chief 45A assumed DIV 1 responsibilities. Crews from 20 & 45 put a quick knock on the fire and crews were held to assist with investigations. Crews cleared after about an hour and a half.

Sunday, April 8, 2012  At 2201 Truck Co. 20 was alerted to the other end of Crain Hwy this time for the basement at 2308 Crain Hwy. The Truck arrived as dispatched the 1st due special service and went to work performing those duties.  Opening up for Engine Co. 43, searching and venting along the way.  Units were held for about 2 hours for over haul.

Friday, April 6, 2012  Firefighters Rescue Goats and Seek Owner



There are times when a Firefighter/Medic is called upon to perform a task that may leave some people wondering what we are doing. So it was this afternoon in our lovely rural community of Croom. A community near Upper Marlboro comprised of single family homes with large yards, tobacco farms and forests with many narrow, winding roads. A citizen stopped by the Croom Fire/EMS Station #845 frantically seeking the firefighter’s assistance. She explained that a couple of farm animals were wandering on the roadway in front of Frederick Douglas High School in the 8000 block of Croom Road and vehicles were swerving to avoid hitting them.

Without hesitation the firefighters of B-shift immediately went to investigate the situation and possibly provide some assistance. They drove to the scene on-board their fire engine, paramedic unit and the battalion utility truck. The Engine and Paramedic Unit remained available in the event of a emergency call was dispatched as the crews operated here. As they approached the scene they observed two citizens attempting to gather 2 goats which were avoiding their capture by scattering across the roadway in front of oncoming traffic. The goats, good samaritans and motorists were all in danger of being injured or killed.

It was clear to Fire Fighter/Medic Lieutenant Lisa Viars that their primary mission was not to capture the stray goats but to protect good samaritans, a nearby road crew and motorists from being involved in a tragic crash. Lt. Viars and her crew of Fire Fighter/Medic Pam Dorsey-Borders, Fire Fighter John Henson, Fire Fighter/Medic Chris Brooks, Fire Fighter/Medic Regan Carter and Brandywine Volunteer Fire Fighter Glenn Johnson immediately stopped all vehicle traffic on Croom Road in the area of the High School and planned to remove the hazard, the 2 goats and the gathering crowd of civilians, from the roadway.

Lieutenant Viars describes the ensuing “rescue” of the goats, “There were several attempts to capture the small goats, as they kept running in fear from the crew members. One goat was caught and placed in the bed of UT845. Croom Road was shut down to traffic while the crew attempted to capture the 2nd goat with the citizen’s assistance. In the meantime, the first goat daringly leapt from the utility truck, crying (bahhing) for its sibling. A road/landscaping crew working on the shoulder at Frederick Douglas High School joined in the rescue attempt at this time. Each time the crew would get close enough to pick them up, the goats were off and running. After several attempts of crawling under vehicles and apparatus, and chasing the young goats through the weeds and trees, the crew members, with the help of the citizens and road crew, managed to herd the goats into a small area and be captured.”

One of the main reason that our firefighters rescue or capture animals and pets that find themselves in unusual situations is that if we do not effect the rescue ourselves using the correct tools and safety procedures than a citizen or pet owner may attempt the rescue themselves and end up being injured and having to be rescued by us anyway. The rescue of animals and pets is always a decision based on safety first of everyone involved and certainly compassion for the animal/pet and their owner is taken into consideration. It is clear in this situation that if firefighters had not intervened there could have been tragic accident.

With the goats being held by firefighters, the crew had another issue; what to do with the two pygmy goats. With the consent of the stations volunteer chief, the crew transported the goats back to Fire/EMS Station #845. Viars and Carter each held a goat providing comfort during the trip back to the station where the goats were kept in a clean storage area and provided with nourishment.

The husband of Lt. Viars has volunteered to keep the goats until such time as the owner can be identified to retrieve them. Lt. Viars stated that one of the pygmy goats has a sticker with the number “574” on its head. The crew members affectionately named the two goats “574” and “845” (845 after the Fire/EMS Station number).

Prince George’s County Fire/EMS Chief Marc S. Bashoor joins Upper Marlboro Volunteer Chief Busi in congratulating the crew for taking control of an unusual and potentially dangerous situation and bringing it to a safe conclusion with no one being injured.

Anyone with information about the ownership of the pygmy goats should contact the Croom Fire/MS Station at 301-883-7745 or 443-404-9375.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012  Around 1100hrs the box for 7300 Loanda Dr was dropped in Co. 45s area for the house fire. Due to Co. 45 taking part in a drill Co. 20 was dispatched as the 1st due Engine Co. Chief 20 arrived on scene to find a SFD split foyer ordinary construction with fire showing from quadrant A & B in the roof and Side B Quadrant B on the exterior. Engine Co. 20 arrived on scene and went to work forcing entry and extending the 2 1/2 stack tip. Engine Co. 20 operated pulling ceilings and extinguishing until the arrival of Truck 26 (first due truck) who then focused on getting access for the engine company. The fire was brought under control around the 20min mark. Chief 20 held command throughout the incident.

Thursday, March 29, 2012  At 1426 Engine Co. 20 was alerted to 5101 West Maple Shade Ln for the house fire.  The Engine Co. arrived on scene to find a electicial fire with minor extension.  It was held in check with companies 20 and 45.  Units returned to service about 30min after arrival.