Indiana:
Sunday May 2, 2021
Indianapolis Fire Department
Working Building Fire
202 Garstang St.
Amtrak facility
Fire originally reported by Beech Grove Police
Dispatched at 00:36 AM
Additional calls to 911 report building on fire
First Unit on scene – EG56 at 00:41 AM
Two Single Story Buildings approx.. 50 x 50 each – Corrugated Construction – Both Fully Involved
Heavy fire showing
16 IFD Units Dispatched
4 Beech Grove Units Dispatched
3 Handlines – 2 Supply Lines – 2 Aerial Ops
Command Orders Defensive Ops only at 00:47 AM
Amtrak Power lines down around buildings at 00:48 AM
Command requests additional units including IFD Tanker Task Force and Haz Mat Team at 00:51 AM
Water on the fire at 1:00 AM
At the request of command – CSX confirms all incoming trains near this location will be stopped at 1:08 AM
Collapse of 1st structure at 1:14 AM
Partial Collapse of 2nd structure at 1:23 AM – full collapse imminent
Fire under control in both buildings at 1:59 AM – 1 hour 22 minutes
No injuries
IMPD on Scene
IEMS on Scene
IFD Fire Buffs on Scene
Incident Commander – Battalion Chief Ben Coe
IFD/IMPD Fire Investigations – Fire under investigation
Marion County Health Department dispatched to scene at 1:19 AM to assess water run off – disregarded at 2:08 AM
Per IFD Haz Mat – all run off tested neutral
The buildings are used to house paint supplies and cleaning products for the rail cars.
Firefighters could not find a working hydrant inside the facility and were not able to get water on the fire for almost 25 minutes. Additional apparatus was needed for the extensive layouts needed to reach the closest working hydrants on Garstang and Emerson. Tanker operations were established to supplement the water supply, and required additional personnel and apparatus to maintain a solid relay operation.
Credit: Rita L Reith, MPIO
