The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-11-05
CHIEF BUTTONS REPORT.
An Increased Numb of Fires Over
the Last Fiscal Year,

A Demand for the Further Strength
eninE of the Observation-Disclosures
to Place the Men on n Footing
Similar to That of the Police
Robert w. Duttou. Chief Engineer Of
the Fire Department. today submitted to
the Commissioners his report Of the op-
orations of the department for the fiscal
year ended June 30. 1901 In the report
Chief Dutton states that the department
responded during the year To 40 alarms.
being an increase Of Il over the year
PREVIOUS OF these 40 were bell alarms.
and 15N silent. or local. alarms OF the
40 alarms sounded. 81 were false
There were. Mr.. Duttou says. CPS fires
| during the year. resulting in loss of
s2S5.GU. The insurance on the property
| involved is not given. because the records
/ of tn, department were not 50 kept as
20 accurately furnish such information.
10 is known, however, that the insurance
on the property burned many times ex-
ce,dod the loss FOR the-y year.
OF the 6oN fires. according to the report,
pa occurred I'm frame buildings and 254
in brick or stone structures. OF the 40
alarms sounded during the year. 2I7 oc-
CURED between noon and o'clock p. m.
20 between o'clock p. m, and midnight,
- between midnight and O'Clock q. IN.
and 1853 between o'clock a. n. and noon.
l The smallest number Of alarms received
occurred in eptember-39-andt the largest
number I'm February-lOi. one hundred
and eighty of the alarms were received
during the spring months, la during the
summer months, 133 during the fan
months and 2i3 during the winter months.
AS compared with the preceding year."
says Mr. DuttOn, there was an increase
OF 81 bell alarms during the past year. of
- silent alarms, and false alarms The
loss during the year ended June 80. 1891.
exceeded by S6l,4SS that OF the previous
fiscal year
The record Of alarms. including bell
and silent ones was as follows. I900-Ju-
iy, 90; August, 50; September. 80; October.
90; November 81. December, 65 1901
January, "A; February. 1o4; March Is;
April. 81, May. As; June, As. There were
( secOnd-aIarm fires during the year;
third. , NTH, but no sixth or general
alarm
1T will be observed that nearly one
ulTCh Of the alarms reSOpuded TO by the
department during the year were false.
| In some instances these alarms resulted
through mistakes. in some through undue
haste and many were due TO mere Wau-
/ touness. the boxes in the last-mentioned
/ cases beng pulled by persons lmpelled
by "a spirit OF malicious mischief. To is
estimated that IL costs not less than SO
I 10 answer a regular alarm Of fire so IL
would seem that in responding TO the 81
false alarms during the past year. the
municipality suffered an expense OF not
less than 1900.
Beyond this matter of expense is the
fact that tine lives of the nTeman we're
ncedlessly endangered oiEht-two times
FOR in responding. the horses drawing the
/ apparatus are driven practically the en-
/ tire journey at fun speed, during which
the breaking of an axle. or part OF the
harness. the fan Of horse. or a collision
means II not death, serious injury to
the men Then, too. while companies are
responding To q false alarm. fire may
occur IN which lives may be lost OF much
valuable property destroyed because Of
their absence For these reasons II Is
respectfully subm tied that the maximum
penalty for wlltully and mallClDuSIy send
ing in a false alarm OF fire, should De in
creased. and term in the peuit-utiary
should be made the penalty for second
offence"
Speaking Of the present strength Of the
department and the need for additional
facilities. Mr.. Dutton says:
The strength Of the department during
the past year was increased from twenty
To tweutv-thTse companies. truck COM
pauy being established ia Georgetown and
one in Columbia Heights. and chemical
engine cOmDany in TenleytoWn- A water
tower of the latest and most improved
type WIS also added TO the department,
very materially increasing its freight
Ing strength The department. however.
is hardly more than half as large as IL
should b., and IN respect TO It's reserve
apparatus IS lameutably weak. there being
but two steamers IL reserve, two hose
8 CARR yes. and one truck. the last-mcu-
] toned apparatus being I'm the department
about twcNty-thr"e years, and IL has be-
come SO Anticipated and weakened as %
make its further use practically impcs-
THE newest steamer in the department
+ b. three years old and som. or them have
B been in service nearly twenty years.
. There is b-t one iTSr-CIass steamer IN
. the de-a Ttmsut. No j. II has been In
. service ton wears. and while il IS rated az
1000 gallons per minute IL is not believed
. il would now exceed gro gallons
/ The department today not only sadly
. needs a number OF larger and up-tO-date
. engines. hut also several more reserve
steamers and trucks There D. hardly a
piece Of apparatus in the department. eN-
Cegting. Of course. those acquired during
the last year or so. that is not in need o,
more or less repairs. and a number or the
4 engines are uah BILE 20 break down az ans
time. In such an event the department
would be- badly crippled. for il is M
possible 20 replace an engine In less thai
. several months time. as such pieces Of
apparatus are not kept iu stock. hut caro-
built 70 order There should b. not less
than six reserve steamers and two true Ks
and these steamers and trucks should bf
as In perfect condition. and OF the same
. strength as those kept in active servir-. '
After referring 10 the change in t1s
head Of the department during the year
Chief Dutl0u says
| There should be. IN is respectfully sub
mittod. further reorganization Of IN,
department. such "A T,OTggniZa tiDn IS
. would place its members ON the same
footing as far as tenure Of Office IS con
coru.d as have been PLACED
the members Of the POLICE
D,rartmsut by The act Of con.
I grrss Of February 3 1901. which provides
among other things That POO removal
from tho Police Force SHAH Doe made ,E.
cept on written charges. and after AN OPP
rortuuity for defence on the part of th,
person against whom such charges mas
Hs made. Iut 300 person so removed shall
ha reaupciUtod To any office iu said Police
Force"
A TOUCH OF WINTER WEATHER