A hundreds years ago, Mechanical Engineers were the highest paid profession. Lawyers were well paid, but far from the highest paid.
Not today.
Posted on 12/28/2019 10:57:39 PM PST by robowombat
Lack Of Water Supply Hindered Concord Mansion Fire Response The closest fire hydrant connected to the town water line was down the hill from the estate. By Samantha Mercado, Patch Staff Dec 28, 2019 11:08 am ET | Updated Dec 28, 2019 3:09 pm ET
CONCORD, MA — The four-alarm blaze that leveled a historic, multi-million dollar home in Concord on Friday had a few advantages over the crews working to put it out, namely, a lack of access to water. Dozens of fire departments responded to the call, including Concord Fire, but the blaze still took over four hours to subdue. Crews were still putting out hot spots and demolishing the home on Saturday.
The fire at the estate at 240 Fairhaven Hill Road spread throughout the entire mansion, which is over 6,500 square feet. Fire officials said the blaze started on the first floor, gaining speed as it spread through the walls and attic. Having a constant supply of water to douse the flames was a struggle for crews — the only hydrant connected to the town water line is down the hill from the estate, on Fairhaven Road.
Five tanker trucks were called to help in supplying water, and crews laid down a fire hydrant supply line from nearby Fairhaven Road. The process of filling the tankers and hauling the water to and from the home meant fire crews had to sacrifice seconds and minutes that could've been spent on the fire.
The house is located in a remote, private residential neighborhood, another challenge crews had to overcome. The neighborhood is served by a small diameter potable water service, fire officials said. The service was installed in the 1920s, nearly 20 years after the home was originally built. The service is fed by a common private water supply.
"This was a massive fire, and getting it under control has been even more difficult due to the water pressure issues in the immediate area," Concord Fire Chief Thomas Judge said, "I commend the work of our firefighters in dealing with this massive fire yesterday and through the night, and thank the numerous departments that provided local aid."
Subscribe Within the last decade, a cistern was installed in the neighborhood to store larger amounts of water. The tank held about 30,000 gallons of water but fire officials said it didn't take long before they worked the tank dry and the flames were still burning.
According to WCVB between the tankers and the cistern, firefighters had used approximately 10,000 gallons of water by 11:50 a.m. The blaze and hot spots weren't completely extinguished until well into the evening.
The sprawling estate sits on over 12 acres of land and was built in 1899 for Charles Francis Adams III, son of President John Quincy Adams. The mansion holds historic significance, not only through it's connection to the Adams' family but as one of the first large country estates not associated with farming in the town. The Adams' family called the home "Mount Vernon."
Appraised at nearly $3 million, the home is now a total loss. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
I wonder what a fire hydrant goes for :)
Good images and videos of this fire.
House has no curb appeal. Looks like a apartment complex.
Those water haulers are usually equipped with vacuum pumps or directly hose up to the river with strainer.
I guess maybe they did not want to get mud on the house or something. Just does not make sense to me
Is this the one owned by a Hearst relative?
Boy i don’t know anything about this stuff.
I just wonder if the owners ever thought of that.
There are so many where I live that it never occurred to me.
But when I went to a house in PA regularly, I never even considered something like that.
Boy those were the woods in Saw Creek in PA.
I wonder how they would have put out a fire there.
The owner needs a refund on his property taxes
Should have used the swimming pool(s) for water.
Anyone know if the house was listed on the National Register?
A hundreds years ago, Mechanical Engineers were the highest paid profession. Lawyers were well paid, but far from the highest paid.
Not today.
They used 10,000 gallons of water to put out the fire according to the article. Had to run down the street to get it.
Anyone see the problem with this story buy looking at the photo?
There’s a swimming pool in the back yard with probably 20,000 gallons in it, right there to pump for the fire.
...unless the pool was empty
December in Concord? Pool was almost certainly empty. BTW, my morning commute is mostly through Concord, by back roads, but nowhere near this. Concord is swampy and much of it is subject to flooding in spring. The current version of the Old North Bridge is about the fourth or fifth, the others long since washed away.
Where I live is more rural, and we have no, zero, fire hydrants. Pumpers draw water from ponds, streams and swamps. There are even strainers near the roadside for them to draw from in places.
A few years ago I was talking with the chief of a very well equipped and trained VFD. He told me they had a mutual aid call 20 miles away in the more urban area. That’s when they realized none of their guys had ever connected to a hydrant.
Part of the reason many rural homes have ponds is for fire control. Built in water supply
Near my house. My house is a couple of hundred yards to behind the woods.
The white pipes are for the fire department. My town of 5,000 did not come to Concord’s aid, but we only have one pumper. The town to south, in the line of sight direction in that view, Stow, did. We were probably covering for them and West Acton.
I have a trout pond right outside the house. Those trout can easily give their lives for the sake of my burning house. I won’t even ask for their permission.
The smoke house would be busy the next day, though...
6500 sqft is considered a mansion? Mines just over 3200 and we just call it a house, and I’m still tripping over dogs and cats.
Needed more buckets.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.