For the period of Friday March 27, 2009 to Thursday April 2, 2009 the Niagara Falls Fire Department responded to 95 calls for assistance.
Friday March 27 – Just before 5:30 PM fire units were dispatched for an incident involving a motorcycle and an automobile at the intersection of Hyde Park Blvd and Ontario Avenue. Firefighters arrived to find the operator of the motorcycle suffering from severe, life threatening injuries. The patient was stabilized and transported to a local hospital where they succumbed to their injuries. The roadway was closed for an extended period of time while the NFFD conducted their accident reconstruction and investigation.
Monday March 30 – A church building in the 1700 block of 16th street was the scene of an early evening fire that was reported at 6:38 PM. Fire units arrived on location and reported visible fire from the bell tower of the building. Members of the Engine Company as well as the Truck Company gained access fire area and were able to quickly get the fire under control. Actual fire damage was minimal and the cause of the fire is believed to be accidental in nature.
Tuesday March 31 - A police officer discovered a fairly large outside fire in the 1900 block of Mackenna Avenue. Engine 8 from the Royal Avenue Station was dispatched just after 4PM to the fast spreading fire that involved mostly brush. Hoselines were deployed and the fire was prevented from spreading to other nearby materials. With the arrival of spring like conditions, the elevated temperatures and the winds make conditions ripe for outside fires to rapidly spread. As a reminder outside burning of brush is prohibited within the City of Niagara Falls.
Wednesday April 1 – A series of automobile accidents kept firefighters at both ends of the city. Just before noon fire units in the LaSalle area responded to the 8900 block of Niagara Falls Blvd. The muti-vehicle accident resulted in five individuals complaining of mostly minor injuries. Firefighters secured the vehicles and began to asses those who were injured. Due to the number of individuals who were injured additional ambulances were requested to respond to the scene. Three of those injured were transported to local hospitals for treatment of the injuries.
The 2000 block of Hyde Park Blvd was the scene of a second accident that was reported at 12:31 PM. In this incident four individual were suffering from mostly minor injuries. In this incident a total of three individuals were transported to the hospital.
Just after 5PM multiple 911 calls came in to Central Alarm reporting a car into a building in the 900 block of Michigan Avenue. Firefighters arrived to find that the rear wall of the commercial building was penetrated by a sedan. The lone occupant of the vehicle refused any medical attention. Representatives from Building and Inspections were asked to respond to the scene to determine the structural integrity of the building.
Thursday April 2 – The alley in the 2200 block of Willow Avenue was the scene of an early morning garage fire that was reported at 4:32 AM. Firefighters arrived to find the entire building fully involved in fire and began deploying hoselines to protect an adjacent home and another garage. While the original fire building was completely destroyed along with its content, firefighters were able to minimize the damage to the exposures. The fire is believed to have started in some type of stove that was used to heat the garage and is considered accidental.
