October 17, 1975 at 1:47 a.m. Mike Lynch Jr. was heading home from work at the A & P store on Burd Street when he spotted a glow in the distance. Mike investigated and found the Cumberland Valley Cooperative Building on West Orange Street to be ablaze. Mike reported the fire to the Shippensburg Civil Defense room that quickly alerted to Shippensburg Fire Department. I don’t remember if Buzzy was working but I could almost hear him say KGD-556 to all Shippensburg monitors as I type this, it is just to bad I can’t type the way he spoke.
The fire of undetermined origin quickly destroyed the large oak frame building and its contents. Acting borough fire chief Charles Myers soon summoned help from five more companies to assist the Vigilant Hose, Cumberland Valley Hose and West End Fire and Rescue Companies. At the height of the blaze more than 175 firemen fought the flames before bringing it under control at 5:00 a.m.
A light drizzle helped but flying brands created problems for firefighters as they flew some distance and landed on rooftops. WEFR firefighters had the task of keeping Bogar lumber from burning as well as battling the blaze. The intense heat damaged several pieces of fire apparatus.
Crawford Wiestling, WEFR chief, said, “Some of my men claimed that at the height of the fire they could have scrambled eggs on the Orange Street Bridge.”
One firefighter was injured and damages exceeded $100,000.
5 comments:
You proably could have fried eggs on the plate glass window of the building across the street.
TM
There is a lot more to the story on this fire than has been told. The fire was subject to a large article published in Fire Engineering Magazine. Preplanning worked well on this incident. I remember it well.
Crawford Wiestling
As I left Mountain View to respond to this call, the fire looked like a large "candle" glowing in the boro. Also as we (firefighters) knelt in front of Boagar Lumber Co plate glass windows to escape the heat, we heard and watched them crack.
TC
Would TC happen to live in Texas now, I was scratching my head last night at work until I came up with a name to match the initials. If so I am glad you found the site, hope you enjoy it and keep coming back. Brad
Yes, Tim Costanza now lives in Texas and he "really" is enjoying your web sites. Thanks for what your doing Brad, it is a great way to preserve the past. I especially enjoy reading other folks comments.
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