The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-06-06
UNDERWRITERS TO
VISIT DEPARTMENT
State Association to Inspect Bir-
mingham's Fire Equipment
CHIEF GETS REPORTS
Receives Accurate information Daily
About What Is Being Done at All
the Engine Houses In
Department.
CHIEF GETS REPORTS

The members of the Alabama Fire I'm
derwrlters' association, which will be in
session in Birmingham tomorrow and Fri
day, will inspect the Birmingham fire de-
partment. and it is probable that the as
ISOLATION will make report of some kind
on the condition in which the department
is found.
The inspection will probably be made
Friday afternoon, and among other things
a run will be made by at least portion
of the department to show the visitors
how much apparatus can be brought to-
gether in few minutes, the kind of appa-
ratus. how it is manned and number of
other bits of information which prove in
teresting to the fire underwriters.
1t is probable that an exhibition will
be given of the manner in which the two
new aerial trucks are handled by the fire.
men, one of which is stationed at No. l
and the other at No. 2, on Nineteenth
street and Avenue d.
Chief Bennett has been unoff1clally
notified that the visitors would make the
inspection. He said yesterday that he
would be ready and willing to do all in his
with the department.
Receives Reports.
The head of the fire department now has
a system of reports by which he keeps in
close touch all the time with everything
that is going on In the department. The
foreman of each fire station in the city
and of each engine company makes a
written report every morning to the chief
about the number of fires attended, the
number of firemen on each piece of APP
paratus. the damage, insurance, kind of
building, number of lines OF hose laid,
the number Of feet of hose laid. the length
of time that the company is at the fire,
the number OF ladders used, the number
of feet of the ladders used, the cause of
the absence of any member of the COM
pany, whether or not any one was in
jured. either citizen or fireman, the cause
of the accident and world of other in
formation whiehTenables him to know ex-
actly what is going on.
In order to make this report each fore
man is supplied with a number of blanks,
and these blanks are filled out and sent
to the chiefs office the first thing each
Inspect Buildings.
Each foreman of a crew in the depart
ment is being required to inspect all the
buildings in the business section of the
city, or that district known as the fire
limits In turn each foreman makes the
inspection accompanied by Assistant
Chief Walton, and q daily report is made
of the buildings inspected.
The report shows the kind of building,
the stairways, fire escapes, whether there
is any system for fighting fire, where the
babcocks are kept. the location of the
stairs, courts of any kind, the means Of
escape from the building, the number of
occupants day and night and the general
condition in which the building is kept,
whether there Is trash about tine yard and
in the halls.
This is done in order that the foremen
may be familiar with all the buildings in
case of fire In this way they are enabled
to fight the flames more intelligently and
know In the dark or thick smoke how
they can rescue. occupants or lead a crew
of fremen out Of the building in case OF
danger. Such information, Chief Bennett
SAYS, is invaluable to the foremen. He alb
serbs a great deal of the information
from the reports made and the in
spection is therefore Of great benefit to
him also.