The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-12-22
ARE ON The ALERT
FIRE PATROL Is WATCHING THE
SHOPPING DISTRICT.
GUARDING AGAINST DANGER.
EXPERIENCED FIRE LADDIES IN
BUSINESS QUARTER OF CITY.

Two Men Have Been Looking
Through Cellars and OutbuiIdfngs
for Dangerous SpOts-PatrOI of
Five Men VIII he Kept Around the
Stores for Two Days This Week.
Supt. Mcguire Shows the Advan-
tages of an Efficient Fire Patrol.
Men Must be LeveI-headed and Act
Promptly.
For week a fire patrol of two men
has been watching closely the shopping
district and on Christmas Eve and
Christmas three experienced firemen
will be added to the force. In this way
Superintendent Mcguire hopes to be
able to prevent any serious confiagra-
tons in the business section of the
city.
This Is a dangerous season of the
year for the fire fighting forces of
cities and the men must be particular
ly alert Firemen Arthur Hancock
and Peter Mcguire have been making
Investigations for a week, looking in
cellars and outbuildings where a fire
might start easily. On Wednesday and
Thursday both of these men will be
kept in the business district and three
other members of the department will
be detailed on the same work.
For this important work Superintend-
ent Mcguire chooses experienced fire.
men and much responsibility rests up
on their shoulders. An insignificant
flame at this season of the year could
H. Il
covered in a crowded store. With a
trained fireman near at hand the same
flame might be extinguished without
much trouble and thousands of dollars
worth of property saved. This is the
theory that the fire chief works on each
year when he puts mis- fire patrol in
the shopping district.
Must be WatchfuI.
All that is required of the men who
make up the patrol is that they be
watchful and act promptly and with
judgment. They must be cool and
constantly on the alert. THE stores
are all packed with Christmas goods"
said superintendent Mcguire yester-
day, in explaining the benefits to be
derived from the maintaining of a fire
patrol during the holidays" land the
aisles are thronged with Christmas
shoppers, who as a rule are careless.
Many of the articles, in fact the ma
jority, that are displayed in the stores
are of highly infiammable material.
1T would only require a spark to
put them in flames and persons who
smoke seldom think when they throw
lighted cigarette or cigar stump
away. Just as likely as not the
smouldering cigar or cigarette will
drop in a dangerous spot and the re-
suit is fire. Upon such occasions, that
is with stores and streets both
thronged with people, folks get ratified
and the fire is permitted to burn I'M
til the arrival of the department 1t
requires some time to sound an ALARM
and with the streets crowded we can
not make the speed that we do under
ordinary circumstances. All of these
things must be taken into considera-
| ton.
Time Valuable Adjunct.
''In such cases time is a very valua-
BILE thing. An entire store might be in
flames before the arrival of the ap-
paratus and there would be no telling
where the fire would stop. With a
clear-headed man at hand such a fire
might be extinguished in a minute and
1t is for this reason that the fire pa
troll is used
The very best, method of fighting
fires is to prevent if possible their oc-
currenee and the next best thing to
| preventing them is to be on hand when
! they start. l would rather have a cool
| and experienced fire fighter on the
| scene minute after a fire has started
than to have a hundred streams of
water on building after 1t has been
| in flames half an hour
1t is probable that when the full
patrol is put on the streets. hand ex-
tinguishers will be kept within reach.
| When fire is discovered the men will
have apparatus to work with In this
manner every precaution will be taken
| to prevent serious conhagrations and
to protect the lives and limbs of shop
perS.