Trailer Fire Succumbs to DSPA-5

April 2009

The Pine Lake Fire Department had hardly unpacked its first DSPA-5 when they were called on to use it to prevent a fire from turning a trailer into a total loss.

It was a call to 9-1-1 from the son of the trailer’s owner that scrambled the men of both the Stella Fire Department and the Pine Lake Fire Department. The smell of smoke had led him to discover flames in the bedroom.

Brian Gerhig, Chief of the Pine Lake department, was one of the first of the scene. He elected to deploy the DSPA-5 through a vented window next to the bedroom. The after-action assessment is provided by Rick Zelechowski, Assistant Chief of Pine Lake: “It was just amazing. Within 15 seconds the fire was completely knocked down. We used only 100 gallons of water to overhaul the few remaining hot spots. Had we not had the DSPA-5 the trailer would have been a complete loss.”

Impressed with its performance, the Pine Lake Fire Department now owns two DSPA-5 units and hopes to add a DSPA-5 to all the department’s vehicles.