| On Friday April 19 at about 19:35 hours, the Avondale Fire Company (Station 23) was alerted to the 900 block of Penn Green Road for the building fire. Initial reports and supplemental info from the New Garden Township PD indicated that one of the buildings at Tojo Mushrooms was on fire with heavy black smoke and fire showing from the roof.
With this info, Chief 23 requested the Working Fire Dispatch, adding Rescue and Ladder 25 to the assignment for the Rapid Intervention Team (RIT). The RIT is a specialized group of trained firefighters that are tasked with rescuing a firefighter in trouble.
Rescue 25 (LaBare) responded shortly after and was the first arriving Special Service so their assignment was changed. The Rescue crew was directed to assume the operations of the Truck Company (ventilation, overhaul, search and rescue, utilities control and many more) with priority being placed on opening the roof. Ladder 25 joined Rescue 25 as the first arriving truck company. The RIT assignment was transferred to another incoming company by Chief 23, who had assumed Tojo Command.
Crews from over 10 different companies spent the next four hours cutting holes in the roof and pulling ceilings to access hidden areas of fire that had made their way into a space between the two. At one point during the incident, crews were pulled from the roof while high winds and lightning from a passing thunderstorm created an even more hazardous situation. The fire eventually went to a second alarm bringing apparatus from as far away as Cranston Heights, Delaware to the scene. All crews were clear from the fire around 12:30AM.
Special thanks to the West Bradford Fire Company (Station 39), Modena Fire Company (Station 37) and Concordville Fire Company (DELCO 59) for covering the Quarterhouse during the incident. Engine 37-2 handled an automatic fire alarm during their coverage of the area. |
