NEW SALVATION ARMY CANTEEN HELPS AT TORRINGTON FIRE!
55 Minutes and we're there!
TORRINGTON, CT - At 6:10 AM Monday morning, the Fire Department called Salvation Army Torrington Corps Officers Lieutenants Alan and Angie Galentine at home and asked for the ‘new' - Emergency Disaster Services Canteen to respond to a major fire on Summer Street.
Lt. Alan, who arrived in Torrington a month ago, knew that he was ready for his first emergency disaster test. He knew that the truck, a re-furbished canteen that served at Ground Zero after 9/11 was ready too. He just needed to get there and get the coffee started.
At 7:15 a.m. The Salvation Army arrived! The canteen was directed to the command location at the Stop & Shop parking lot. Next, more volunteers arrived. The Army worked in conjunction with the Torrington Police Department, the Torrington Auxiliary Fire Department and the Red Cross. And then just like the volunteers, more supplies began to arrive. Bottled water and ice from Stop & Shop. Donuts and coffee from Dunkin Donuts. Tacos and burritos from Tacco Bell and Egg McMuffins, double cheeseburgers, and McChicken sandwiches from McDonald's.
The Hartford Courant reported, "The fire was so hot that it melted the vinyl siding on homes on nearby Cameron Street, Torrington Fire Chief John Field said. Firefighters suspect that the blaze had been burning for some time before the first alarm came in at 5:07 a.m. an orange glow filled the sky above the former Stone Container Corp. pizza box factory. "When the first companies arrived on scene, they struck multiple alarms right away, Chief Field said. "It looked impressive."
Lt. Galentine said, "The Salvation Army loves to help whenever there is a need. This is our community, and the folks fighting this fire are our people. I'm glad that we were able to be here for them when they needed us. My volunteers and I were praying for each and every one of them, and we thank God that all of them are OK. They did a great job!"
All across America, The Salvation Army has provided Emergency Disaster Services to individuals and communities affected by disasters and other catastrophic events since its charter was enacted in the United States in 1899. The Army has a tradition of often being the "first to arrive . . . . and the last to leave,". . . bringing relief on a year round basis - offering food, shelter, a helping hand, a friendly smile and a few words of comfort.
Last year, in Connecticut and Rhode Island, Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Canteens served over 1,039,364 meals and beverages to fire fighters, police officers, victims and people in need. And yet, no fees are accepted for any items served from Salvation Army Canteens.
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FIRE DESTROYS BUILDING IN HISTORIC TORRINGTON FACTORY COMPLEX
By DAVID OWENS Reprinted from The Hartford Courant
August 11, 2009
TORRINGTON - A ferocious early-morning fire destroyed a building in a historic Torrington factory complex, but firefighters kept the blaze from spreading to nearby buildings.
The fire was so hot that it melted the vinyl siding on homes on nearby Cameron St., Torrington Fire Chief John Field said.
Four firefighters were injured fighting the fire. One suffered a sprain and the others suffered heat-related ailments but are recovering, Field said. Firefighters suspect that the blaze had been burning for some time before the first alarm came in at 5:07 a.m. An orange glow filled the sky above the former Stone Container Corp. pizza box factory.
"When the first companies arrived on scene, they struck multiple alarms right away," Field said. "It looked impressive."
The fire went to a fourth alarm and all off-duty firefighters and volunteers from Torrington as well as volunteers from Winsted, Harwinton, Litchfield and Thomaston responded. Waterbury firefighters staffed the Torrington fire house and handled other calls in Torrington.
The fire was declared under control about 9 a.m. and firefighters left the scene about 2 p.m. The city fire marshal, assisted by the state fire marshal and Torrington police, is now investigating.
The fire began in a building used for storage by Daley Moving and Storage, Field said, and everything in the building was destroyed. The building's roof collapsed during the fire.
Firefighters kept the blaze from spreading to adjoining buildings - there are about six in the complex - although some did suffer some fire damage.
"Due to the good work of these guys, they kept it in check, to the one building," Field said. "It was real close."
The building that burned was built about 1900, according to city assessment records, along with the rest of the Hendey Machine Co. complex. The site has a long industrial history, first as Hendey, which manufactured machine tools. At its peak during World War II, Hendey employed about 1,500 people.
Hendey closed in 1954 and the plant was taken over by American Brass Co., which used a portion of the facility to manufacture cast and rolled aluminum. In the 1960s, American Brass consolidated operations and sold the plant.
The plant then was used for production of corrugated cardboard until Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. ended operations there in 2000.
The shopping center to the north of the factory complex, where firefighters set up their command post, was the site of Torrington's biggest fire. In July 1973, the Connecticut Warehouse Corp./Gavlick Machinery Corp. fire in the old Anaconda American Brass Co. plant burned. A three-square block, eight-story industrial complex was consumed by a fire fed by carpet, liquor, oil and cleaning fluids, tires and televisions.
Copyright © 2009, The Hartford Courant
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