Bolton Hill is served by Baltimore City’s Smokestack Hardy Fire Station, just a few blocks west of Eutaw Place at 405 McMechen St. If you live near McMechen, you surely have heard the sirens. Ever wonder about the guys who serve on those trucks and what their jobs are like? Casey Novak, a third generation firefighter who leads the engine company, answered questions.
Yes, they are all guys. There are women assigned to other battalions, but Engine Company 13 and Truck 16 are currently staffed by men. Casey Novak is not unusual in that he sees his work as a “family business.” His grandfather served 35 years, and his father retired out of the same firehouse after 32 years. Casey Novak grew up in Locust Point and now lives in the county. He joined BFD in 2000.
Like many in his ranks, he speaks of firefighting as a calling: “Sometimes it’s thankless, sometimes stressful, but who doesn’t like being a hero? We have a passion for the profession. We love doing the job, knowing that we helped someone experiencing their worst day,” he said.
Baltimore has two academies for training: fire and an emergency medical services academy. Training is now twice as long as it was when Casey joined – up to 8 months. The fire engine carries water and hoses and is responsible for advancing a firehose inside buildings and extinguishing the fire. The ladder truck is responsible for ladders, ventilation and search and rescue. Truck teams also do “auto extrication” (removing a person trapped in a vehicle), and special operations like water rescue or confined space rescue.
While the station covers the whole city, they are “first alarm” responders for the area bounded roughly by Charles Street, Druid Park Lake Drive, North Cary Street, Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard and Franklin Street. According to Novak, the engine company averages 330 to 530 calls per month (During the pandemic it approached 6,000 calls one year), and the ladder truck does close to 5,000 runs per year. About 80 percent of their calls are medical; only 20 percent are fires.
They work 24-hour shifts – 24 hours on, 24 hours off, 24 hours on again, followed by five days off. There are eight men on each shift – four on the engine and four assigned to the truck.
Each shift starts off with coffee with the outgoing shift and some personal “catch up” time. They pass on information about the trucks and engines and any mechanical issues. Information about upcoming training is shared, as well as “fire department rumors.” The fire station has a large kitchen (currently being renovated) and the crew take turns bringing in and prepping meals. After breakfast is “housework;” fire fighters are responsible for the upkeep of the station, from cleaning to taking the trash out.
While calls are unpredictable, there is a schedule of preassigned duties for each day. On Mondays they check fire hydrants and Tuesday they check buildings. Wednesday is TEZ (Target Enforcement Zone) sweeps where they inspect vacant homes to determine if the structure is suitable for fire entry. Thursday is skills training at the Fire Academy. Friday is a “make up day.”
On Saturday they make home visits, called “safety sweeps,” knocking on doors to ask residents if they have working smoke detectors. They will test for carbon dioxide and inspect the home if the residents request it. They will help residents create home escape plans, and help families identify at least two ways out of their home. They will also install smoke alarms for free, where needed. Sundays are for battalion level training.
If you miss the “safety sweeps” and would like to have a free smoke alarm, you can call or fill out a 311 request. The requests are sent to the fire station, and they respond as they can, between 7 am and 7 pm, with emergency calls taking precedence.
Last words of advice from Casey Novak: if you have a fire in your home, close the door behind you when you run out of a room (lots of people run out and leave the doors open). And when you’re out, stay out.
And who, exactly, was Smokestack Hardy? That’s an interesting, but not charming, Old Baltimore story. Bolton Hill readers won’t be shocked to learn that the Baltimore Fire Department, like those in most big cities, for decades hired only white firefighters. However, World War II caused a shortage of firemen in Baltimore and eventually led toward the integration of the Baltimore Fire Department.
Hardy, born in 1904 and passionate as a child about firefighting, joined the first 15 recruits to the auxiliary fire department volunteer program. He became the first local African American fireman, certified in 1942. Black volunteers were assigned throughout the city to assist the paid white firemen on runs. Finally, in 1953, Hardy passed a civil service exam and became one of 10 black firemen hired by BFD.
Also a photographer, historian and collector of fire memorabilia, Hardy became somewhat famous in the 1950s nationally by opening a black firefighters museum in the city. He was featured in Ebony magazine and other media. After his death in 1995, much of his memorabilia and photography moved to the Fire Museum of Maryland in Lutherville. Wikipedia has a lot more information about Arthur “Smokestack” Hardy. Last year the Peale Museum had an exhibit focusing on Hardy and other early black firefighters: Igniting Integration!
–Lisa Summers
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