Fire at Jim & Nick's!

Shortly after the lunch rush hour today, Charleston firefighters responded to a call for a fire at the Jim & Nick's BBQ Restaurant on King Street.  The popular downtown eatery sustained fire and smoke damage in the hood and duct system in the kitchen along with smoke damage throughout the dining room area.  All patrons and employees were evacuated without injury as CFD's finest kept the damage to a minimum. Thanks to the St. Andrews truckies on the back up.  Hopefully, the restaurant will be back and running in a few days.

In Sympathy. . . . . . . .

We extend our sincere condolences to the family of former Deputy Chief Jeffery Thompson of the Pine Ridge Fire Department. Chief Thompson, passed away Saturday, August 28, 2010. Funeral services will be held Thursday afternoon, September 2, 2010, at 4:00 p.m, at the Pine Ridge Fire Department Headquarters Station. Burial will be held at the Plantation Memorial Gardens. Friends may call at Parks Funeral Home located at 130 West 1st North St., in Summerville on Wednesday evening from 6 - 8 o'clock. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Pine Ridge Fire Department, 565 Myers Road, Summerville, SC 29483. He is survived by his wife, Brandy R. Thompson of Goose Creek, SC; his mother, Diane White of Summerville; his father and stepmother, Frank and Stephanie Thompson of Round O, SC; his brother, Frank N. Thompson, IV and his wife Brandy of Summerville; his maternal grandparents, Harry and Lavonia White of Mobile, AL; two nephews, Kaleb and Connor Thompson of Summerville; two aunts, Deborah Orso of Daphne, AL, Linda Marx of Mobile, AL; one uncle, David Thompson of Mobile, AL. Jeffery was predeceased by his brother, Charleston 9 member, Brandon K. Thompson.

Oh, So Close!

The MisFire Racing crew made several runs at Orangeburg Dragway with our hot rod on Friday night. Best time was 5.02 seconds at 139 mph in the 1/8 mile. That 4 second run still eludes us. We were 3 one hundreths of a SECOND from being there!! We will not be denied!! We will compete in the Top 8 Doorslammers race at Dorchester Dragway on Highway 78 between Summerville and St. George next Sunday, September 5, beginning at 6:00 p.m. Come out and join us for some Labor Day weekend action!

Team to Host Hurricane Preparedness Workshop!

In the past three years, a large number of people have joined the CFD family. These new firefighters and their families have come from all over the United States and many of them have never lived near the coast or through a hurricane. With that in mind, our Team is sponsoring a Hurricane Preparedness Workshop for the CFD family to be held on Wednesday, September 15, beginning at 7:00 p.m. in the conference room of the Charleston Dorchester Mental Health Center located at 2100 Charlie Hall Blvd., West of the Ashley. Many topics will be discussed including preparing your homes, supplies that you may need, evacuation routes, shelter availability and living in a community damaged by a storm. There will also be a question and answer period to address any concerns that you may have.

While our target group is our new families, it is important for all of you to take advantage of this important meeting. Sharing of experiences by those of you who have been here during a storm will be invaluable to our new families. Secondly, it has been twenty-one years since Hurricane Hugo changed the face of Charleston and our lives and many of you who experienced it were children at the time. 

Please come out and join us for an informative evening.

Charleston Fire Department Retirees, Mark Your Calendars!

The next meeting of the CFD Retirees' "Hooked Up" program will be held on Thursday, September 16, beginning at 7:00 p.m., at the Charleston Visitors' Center on Meeting Street in downtown Charleston. Dinner will be served and a great program is in the works. Reminder invitations will be sent to each of  you the first of September. Hope to see you all there!

This is a Must Watch!

Thanks to our friend Ally Moore for sharing this with us in a FaceBook post. Absolutely unbelievably touching! Click on the caption to watch!

Chief Carr Wins National Award!!

Our Chief, Thomas Carr, has been been selected as the "Career Fire Chief of the Year" for 2010 by Fire Chief Magazine. Chief Carr will receive his award next week at the International Association of Fire Chiefs' Annual Conference in Chicago. Congratulations Chief!!

Carolina Children's Charity 8K Run & Fun Walk

The Carolina Children's Charity's 7th Annual 8K Run & 2 Mile Fun Walk will be held on Saturday, September 25 at the Hanahan Recreation Center located off of Mabeline Road behind Trident Technical College. Registration begins at 6:45 a.m., Run begins at 8:00 a.m followed by the Walk at 8:05 a.m. Come out and join with our CFD Wives' Club as they participate in this worthwhile cause. Visit the CCC website at www.carolinachildren.org/runwalk.htm for more information! 

A Tribute to a Friend . . . . . . . .

Funeral services were held today for Michael Wren, a former Lieutenant with the North Charleston District Fire Dept. and retired from the Naval Weapons Station Fire Department. Mike passed away this past week after a battle with cancer. In 1982, Mike (shown on the right in the photo) and Lt. Howell Gooding of the District Fire Department administered medical care to a cable TV worker who had lost his arm in an accident. Mike and Howell controlled the patient's bleeding, recovered his severed arm and packed it in ice before turning him over to EMS where local doctors successfully reattached the arm. Mike, affectionally known as "Wimpy" by his friends for his love of hamburgers, was a good man and a good friend. Rest in Peace, my Brother. Gerald

Bright LIghts & Fresh Air!

In addition to new Engines 108 & 115, the CFD has recently taken delivery of a new light and air truck, appropriately named "Air 101".  It is built on a Kenworth chassis and has all the bells and whistles. Stay tuned for the upcoming Battalion Command vehicles that are on the way. First one should be in service soon!

Restoring Metal and Memories. . . . . . . .

SAFD Truck # 9

Have we met our match? Time will tell. It's time to get out the "fire wrench" and get started. Wish us luck as the memory of many of us rides in this old truck and it is a story worthy of being told! This truck was put in service in 1969 and served mainly as the Training Officer's vehicle for a large portion of its' service life. It difficult to look at it and not remember the many members of the St. Andrews Fire Department that helped shape the foundation for the department it is today. Obviously, my Dad, J.G. Mishoe, first comes to mind, and many others such as Mickey Kennedy, Henry Duren, Billy Peek, Buck Bowen, Bob Parish, Earl Matthews, (the lone holdout), John Weeks, John Anderson, J.T. Smith, Arthur Cope, Israel Fogle, Benny Picquet, and many, many others who gave and are giving, (that's for you, brother Earl), their service and commitment to the citizens of St. Andrews Parish over the years.

Captain Earl Matthews

To our brothers and sisters of the SAFD, thank you for continuing that spirit and commitment. You all have inherited a proud heritage as you continue to add your own memories for those that will follow you.

Country Justice

This morning, during my normal breakfast stop at Ms. Eva's in Summerville, I listened as usual to my friends tell stories of old.  It seems that once Ralph's uncle had a problem with kids vandalizing his mailbox. They would ride by in a car at night and take out their aggression on his mailbox with a baseball bat.  Well, after several times of replacing his mailbox, he grew tired of their shenanigans and devise a new approach. He put up a new post with three mailboxes in a row. The two outside mailboxes were poured full of concrete and, sure enough, the first morning after, he found a badly splintered baseball bat scattered in the roadway. Can't imagine what ringing the culprit heard in his ears and felt in his wrists afterwards. At any rate, PROBLEM SOLVED!!

Team Maverick Competes for American Lung Association!

Congratulations to our Team member, Chris Wells, (on right), his son, Casey, and his brother, Darrell, for competing in the Fight for Air Climb Charleston at the North Charleston Coliseum this past Saturday to raise money for the American Lung Association. This issue is close to our hearts because of how prevalent lung problems are among firefighters. They climbed 1,144 steps each and helped raise a total of $ 33,000 for the American Lung Association. A special hats off to Casey for winning his age group!