Week ending May 9

Garden City Volunteer Fire Department tanks fire at port

A fire in an empty tank at the port kept Garden City firefighters busy Tuesday afternoon.

The blaze started while workers were dismantling the tank, which formerly held latex rubber.

"Welders were cutting the tank apart, and sparks apparently caught the insulation on fire," said Garden City Fire Chief Jimmy Crosby. He had stopped in at city hall for a moment and was there when Chatham County Dispatch paged out the department.

"When I walked out of city hall," Chief Crosby said, "I looked over toward the port and could see the smoke."

So could everyone else. The fire sent billows of dense black smoke spiraling so high into the afternoon sky that one television report said it was visible in Richmond Hill.

"When flames started coming out the top of the tank, the smoke got real black," Chief Crosby said.

Three pumpers and one rescue truck from Garden City Fire Stations 1 and 2 responded to the alarm, taking all of the foam they had available, in case the fire could not be doused with water. Because of the large volume of smoke, the number of nearby structures and possibility that hazardous materials could become involved if the fire spread, Chief Crosby asked the Savannah Fire Department to respond, as well.

The tank was more than 70 feet tall--roughly 4 or 5 stories. "The tank still had about a foot of latex in the bottom of it and that added to the smoke," the chief said.

As it turned out, the foam wasn't needed to put out the fire. With only 11 firefighters, the Garden City Fire Department reached the scene in about four minutes. They had the fire under control within a few minutes and extinguished in under an hour. A small workshop a scant few feet from the burning tank also caught fire, but that was put out by the Savannah firefighters, who also helped keep the flames from spreading further.

No injuries were reported.

MADD is wild about cops

The Chatham County chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving held its annual awards ceremony to honor members of law enforcement Saturday at the Fairmont in Savannah.

Lt. Marta Street of the Bloomingdale Police Department, Staff Sergeant Wayne Daniels of the Garden City Police Department, and Officer Matt Rhodes of the Port Wentworth all received awards for their commitment to education and enforcement to reduce the number of drunk drivers on our roads. Officers from the Savannah Police Department also received awards.

Mr. James Priest, Chatham County MADD coordinator, gave the opening prayer and served as Master of Ceremonies. He and Ms. Lisa Angel, coordinator for the Bryan County chapter, handed out the awards as Ms. Michelle Paynter of WJCL TV announced each citation. State Executive Director for MADD, Mr. Christopher Noe, was guest speaker.

Ms. Angel gave a brief history of the organization and said that through education and enforcement of the laws against drunk driving, the number of fatal traffic accidents involving DUIs dropped from nearly 40 thousand in the 1980s to around 16 thousand nationwide.

"Each of those 16 thousand was someone's mother, someone's father, someone's daughter, someone's son," she said.

That number, Mr. Noe said, "Is the equivalent of two jetliners crashing each week."

He said the effort to reduce alcohol-related traffic accidents is "a partnership of communities and law enforcement working together. You (members of) law enforcement are on the front lines every night. You know the seriousness and the magnitude of this."

Compliance checks in stores to make sure they diligently check identification, and safety checkpoints on the streets are both "fantastic, innovative programs," Mr. Noe said, pointing out that drunk driving not only kills and injures thousands annually, but also exacts an enormous economic toll on every community.

MADD in Georgia continues to recruit more volunteers and hopes to open 10 new chapters. Currently, there are 15 chapters in Georgia.

"A lot of folks don't realize the potential impact they can have on their community," Mr. Noe said.

The group hopes to set up victim assistance networks around the state so families who become victims of a DUI offender will have a support network.

"It is so disheartening that a victim can be victimized all over again when they see an offender bonded out or given a reduced sentence," Mr. Noe said.

Mr. Priest gave special recognition during the dinner to Helen Smith of the Victim Witness Protection Program for her hard work with this valuable program.

In addressing the law enforcement officers, Mr. Priest, who lost his wife and two children to a drunk driver several years ago, said, "Never stop and think for one moment that what you all do is not important."

From his own experience and from that of others he's talked to, Mr. Priest said, "One of the greatest feelings a victim has is seeing an officer pull up to the scene with those flashing lights, coming to help."

Savannah Police Officer Edward Horner, now on the Narcotics Eradication Team, said that back when he patrolled the streets, "I took that very personally. I would seize the vehicle, I would tow the vehicle--I did everything I could to make sure I'd done my part."

He said more pressure needs to be put on the judges and courts. "When you drink and drive and bond out of jail and drink and drive on the way home," he said, "you have a problem."