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Chicago 3-11 Alarm fire 12-27-11
On Tuesday evening, Chicago fire crews responded to a reported fire at 2626 W. Roosevelt Road, a long, vacant building situated between Washtenaw Avenue and the railroad tracks. Engine 107, stationed just around the corner, was the first to arrive and reported flames on the second floor. Battalion 4 then requested a still alarm and a box alarm, as the structure was identified as a two-story, large brick warehouse. Early in the incident, firefighters adopted a defensive strategy, using elevated master streams and a deck gun from Engine 107 to contain the fire.
Approximately 20 minutes into the response, the fire was upgraded to a 2-11 alarm, and a 3-11 was called half an hour later when no companies were left in the staging area. A Level I Haz Mat unit was also dispatched after the 3-11 was activated. Tower Ladder 5, Tower Ladder 10, and Squad 1’s Snorkel worked alongside the master streams along Roosevelt Road. About an hour into the fire, crews began entering the building to tackle remaining spot fires, and the blaze was eventually knocked down by around 9:30 PM.
Photographer Larry Shapiro captured several key moments of the incident, including Engine 107 using its deck gun in Sector 1, Squad 1 repositioning their Snorkel, and Tower Ladder 5, one of the few American LaFrance/LTI ladders still in service, stationed near the intersection of Roosevelt and Talman. Other images showed Tower 10, Truck 7, and Engine 109 supplying water to the front of the building, while command units and support vehicles were positioned strategically around the scene.
Tim Olk and Larry Shapiro were on-site, with Tim noting that heavy smoke was visible and low along Roosevelt Road. Despite the intensity, there wasn’t much visible fire to photograph. Larry has compiled a full gallery of the event, which can be viewed [here](#). The incident highlighted the coordinated efforts of multiple fire companies and the importance of defensive operations in managing large-scale fires in vacant structures.