Firefighters deliver on service in many ways

The recent fires in Norristown have dominated the news. First there was the tragic fire in 2016 on DeKalb Street that resulted in four deaths and five injuries. Last week there was the three-alarm fire at the Montgomery Mills apartment complex that displaced 24 residents.

Norristown Fire Chief Tom O’Donnell has been severely affected by the disasters during the last two years. Personally, the reality of the tragedies was far different from childhood memories.

“Who wants to go for a ride on a fire truck?”

As a child, that was one of the biggest thrills imaginable.

Shiny, red, enormous. Men dressed in uniforms.

Uncle John was Fire Chief in Clifton Heights, Delaware County.

Like most Italian families, we had aunts and uncles who weren’t really our relatives. It didn’t matter. It was just another lovable part of growing up during a simpler time in America. And I got to see the fire trucks up close.

For the most part, that was my entire vision of firefighting until my college years.

That all changed during a late night ride home from Villanova. My birthday was the next day and the family would be getting together for dinner.

Along with a couple of friends, we made the drive north on Route 320, over the hill and descended into Conshohocken. Before we could cross the Fayette Street Bridge, we were stopped by a scene of unimaginable proportions.

All of West Conshohocken seemed to be on fire. Flames reached hundreds of feet in the sky.

We parked the car but couldn’t get much closer to the scene as police cordoned off the area. Still blocks from the epicenter of the blaze, we could feel the intense heat cutting through the brutally cold January night. It was 1971 and a gas explosion had devastated the tiny community.

In all, 15 houses would be destroyed by the fire, a total of 24 houses damaged. And four people – including a 19-year-old firefighter – were killed.

Not many months later, with the images of the West Conshohocken fire still fresh in my mind, another reminder of the dangers of firefighting became all too clear.

It was a warm summer evening. After re-connecting with a high school friend – a cute former cheerleader, who obviously