39-532: The Great Chelsea fire of 1973 , also known as the second Great Chelsea fire , was a conflagration that occurred on October 14, 1973, in Chelsea, Massachusetts , a city directly across the Chelsea Creek from East Boston. The fire burned 18 acres (7.3 ha), and was spread by strong winds and a lack of adequate water supply in the neighborhood of the fire. The fire started 200 yards (180 m) away from
78-432: A firestorm , in which the central column of rising heated air induces strong inward winds, which supply oxygen to the fire. Conflagrations can cause casualties including deaths or injuries from burns , trauma due to collapse of structures and attempts to escape, and smoke inhalation . Firefighting is the practice of extinguishing a conflagration, protecting life and property and minimizing damage and injury. One of
117-638: A bill to prohibit furloughs for such inmates. However, in 1976, Michael Dukakis vetoed that bill. Sargent also created the Appeals Court in 1972, and elected Alan M. Hale, then a justice of the Superior Court at the time, along with David Rose, Edmund Keville, Reuben Goodman, Donald Grant, and Christopher Armstrong. They were sworn under oath in October 1972. Sargent said of the experience, "I wasn't too darn anxious to come here. I liked what I
156-568: A biography of Barney Frank , White was the first mayor to declare the city had a race problem, and people wanted to keep him as mayor instead of making him governor. Frank said, "Sargent was seen as a good liberal and some liberals reasoned that if we elect Kevin White as governor, who knows who is going to be Mayor of Boston." Frank also said it was Sargent's popularity that won him the election. Sargent retired from politics after running for reelection and being defeated by Democrat Michael Dukakis in
195-667: A general contractor to learn the building trade. He then started his own firm, Sargent & Sweeney. Sargent served in World War II , fighting in Italy, earned a Bronze Star , and a Purple Heart . He enlisted in 1942, volunteered for the ski troops, and rose from private to corporal to sergeant to lieutenant to captain while serving with the 10th Mountain Division in Italy. After the war, Sargent moved with his family to Orleans on Cape Cod , where he and his son started and ran
234-645: A great deal because of the courage that it took to do that. Sargent also called in Alan A. Altshuler , a political science professor at MIT take a new look at where we were headed in transportation policy. Sargent made him Secretary of Transportation and he presided over the Boston Transportation Planning Review . This review basically led to the stopping of the inner belt and the southwest expressway. Frederick P. Salvucci called them "two major very destructive interstate highways". But,
273-466: A lot of money into improving public transportation, and the third component that we're seeing built now is, take the existing Central Artery that's there and fix it. I mean fix it both from a transportation point of view, because it doesn't work, but also fix what it did to the city by etting [ sic ] it underground and knit the city back together again. That was a very thrilling moment in my life, when Sargent did it. And I've always respected him
312-731: A memoir in 1973 about their time in office, entitled The Governor's Wife: A View from Within . In 1969, she helped to launch the Doric Dame, a group of volunteers that led tours of the Massachusetts State House . They had a son, Francis W. "Bill" Sargent, Jr., and two daughters, Fay and Jessie (Jay). In the Massachusetts general election of 1978 , Sargent's son was considered by the State Republican Committee to succeed William A. Casey as
351-639: A proper defense was set up, however, the fire leaped 150 feet (46 m) over their heads and ignited the Emerald Autoworks facility. Due to its rapid size and growth, Chief Fothergill boarded a helicopter to direct operations from the sky. After crossing Vale Street, every one of its buildings was engulfed in 12 minutes. To avoid being trapped, firefighters from Medford , having responded through mutual aid, were forced to abandon one of their engines. A system of hoses and feeder lines from as far as one mile (1.6 km) away were set up to relay water to
390-501: A seat in the Massachusetts state Senate, but lost. In 1966, Sargent ran for and was elected as Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts with the slogan "Put Sarge in Charge". In 1969, he became acting governor when Governor John A. Volpe (R) resigned to become secretary of Transportation under President Richard Nixon. In 1970, Sargent won the gubernatorial election in his own right, defeating Boston Mayor Kevin White . According to
429-491: Is my belief that the men we have selected will allow this court to take its rightful place in our judicial system. It is a bench both balanced and responsive. It will, from the outset, be able to shoulder its full share of an appellate overload which for many years has been staggering." He called the creation of the Appeals Court "the single most significant step in judicial reform in Massachusetts this century." Sargent
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#1732793918814468-470: Is urgently needed." Later calculations revealed that over 300 buildings had burned down. 42°23′47.33″N 71°2′32.23″W / 42.3964806°N 71.0422861°W / 42.3964806; -71.0422861 Conflagration A conflagration is a large fire . Conflagrations often damage human life, animal life, health, and/or property. A conflagration can begin accidentally or be intentionally created ( arson ). A very large fire can produce
507-662: The 1974 gubernatorial election . Among the factors was voter distaste for the Watergate scandal , and an economic slowdown. When Sargent first entered office, the budget was in turmoil because of spending increases on welfare and other benefits. He tightened rules for qualifying for Medicaid and introduced a new corporate tax. He was governor of the Commonwealth during the strife over school busing following Judge W. Arthur Garrity 's 1974 decision to desegregate Boston public schools through court-mandated redistricting of
546-476: The Massachusetts Institute of Technology , where he was a classmate and friend of architect I.M. Pei . Sargent received a special degree in architecture after completing four years of what was then a five-year program, rather than a normal graduation. After MIT, Sargent worked for the architectural firm of Coolidge Shepley Bulfinch and Abbott as a draftsman, leaving to work as a carpenter for
585-646: The Republican Party , he previously served as the 63rd lieutenant governor of Massachusetts from 1967 to 1971. In 1969, he became acting governor when John A. Volpe resigned to become Secretary of Transportation under the Nixon Administration. In 1970 , he was elected governor in his own right, defeating the Democratic Party 's nominee Kevin White . He lost reelection in 1974 to Democrat Michael Dukakis , who would go on to be
624-472: The Boston school system, including busing some students out of their neighborhoods to end a pattern of racial segregation in the schools. Sargent had previously vetoed attempts to repeal or water down the state's Racial Imbalance Act, which prohibited state aid to racially imbalanced school districts. When Sargent called for obeying the federal court order, anti-busing forces complained that he and his neighbors in
663-523: The Democratic Party's nominee for President in 1988 . Sargent was born in 1915 in Hamilton, Massachusetts , the son of Margery (Lee) and Francis Williams Sargent. He was known for his sharp wit and self-deprecating manner. A Republican , "Sarge" graduated from Charles River School , and then Noble and Greenough School . Sargent was a student in the architecture program (class of 1939) at
702-608: The Goose Hummock sporting goods store, beginning in 1946. Sargent served as the Director of Marine Fisheries for ten years, from 1947 to 1957. Between 1959 and 1962 he was in Washington, D.C., as the executive director of the U.S. Outdoor Recreation Resources Review Commission. He was appointed as the state Commissioner of Public Works in Massachusetts in 1964, a position he held for two years. In 1962, Sargent ran for
741-681: The Red Line, relocating the Orange Line, basically rebuilding the public transportation infrastructure of the city. That came out of that decision and another component of the same decision – you can go check that speech that Frank Sargent gave – was that the only highways that would continue to be studied within Route 128 would be the depression and widening of the Central Artery and the extension of I-90 over to Logan in an additional tunnel,
780-493: The bus and were standing in the pitch black. They got back in the bus and left. Sargent was still laughing about that two weeks ago." Sargent also created the weekend prison furlough program. After the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that the right extended to first-degree murderers because the statute did not specifically exclude them, the Massachusetts legislature quickly passed
819-471: The exception of the Northern Expressway in 1970. Sargent became a strong advocate for changing the federal laws governing aid to states for highway construction so that more funds were available for mass transit projects such as subways and light-rail vehicles . Frederick P. Salvucci , an engineer, said this of Sargent and the cancellation of the inner belt : Yes, of course. In many ways
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#1732793918814858-591: The fire as it grew in size to around two city blocks . Many fire engines and crews were forced to retreat at this time to avoid becoming trapped. A new defense position was aimed to take place at the corner of Maple and Summer Street, but the rapidly expanding fire soon overtook that position. At 4:12 p.m. it had jumped Maple Street and at 4:15 p.m. it had leaped another two blocks which forced firefighters back in another retreat. Around this time, Chief Herbert C. Fothergill requested mutual aid from all surrounding areas. At 4:20 p.m., 24 minutes after
897-437: The fire grows into a firestorm . Inside a building, the intensity of gas exchange depends on the size and location of openings in walls and floors, the ceiling height, and the amount and characteristics of the combustible materials . Francis Sargent Francis Williams Sargent (July 29, 1915 – October 22, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 64th governor of Massachusetts from 1969 to 1975. A member of
936-559: The fire were given portable radios on the Chelsea Fire Command frequency and relayed the information and instructions to their individual companies. In 120 minutes, the fire engulfed 18 city blocks, and the firefighters were successfully able to mount a defense in front of the Williams School. From the helicopter, Chief Fothergill ordered that an all out stand must be made from the school at 6:30 p.m., as it
975-415: The first alarm had been sounded, Chief Fothergill notified Chelsea Command that a conflagration was in progress. At 4:30 p.m., the fire was raging out of control and now encompassed five blocks. A new strategic firefighting defensive position was set up on Everett Avenue, the only street in the area wide enough to act as a firebreak. Strong winds again prevented water from getting to the flames. Before
1014-514: The funds were reallocated towards public transportation, and saw the extension of the Red Line to Braintree and the relocation of the Orange Line. After Sargent was defeated in the election of 1974, he accepted an appointment as a senior lecturer at the Joint MIT-Harvard Center for Urban Studies. He also continued to own the Goose Hummock sporting goods store until 1986. Sargent married Jessie Fay Sargent in 1938. She wrote
1053-413: The goals of fire prevention is to avoid conflagrations. When a conflagration is extinguished, there is often a fire investigation to determine the cause of the fire. During a conflagration a significant movement of air and combustion products occurs. Hot gaseous products of combustion move upward, causing the influx of more dense cold air to the combustion zone. Sometimes, the influx is so intense that
1092-581: The main lines as the water supply was inadequate from the start. At 5:30 p.m., the fire had surrounded the Engine 5 Fire Station, and even though there was not a single firefighting apparatus available to them, the firefighters refused to abandon the station. Heated columns of air rose hundreds of feet high creating massive amounts of fresh air the fire needed to sustain itself, which were drawn in at ground level and creating winds that at times reached 100 mph (160 km/h), drove heavy debris through
1131-413: The most thrilling moment in the history of the antihighway fight was when we won. And then Governor Sargent went on television and said, basically, he had been the public works commissioner who had fought for the inner belt earlier in his career and, as governor he said it was a mistake and "I'm going to admit that mistake and stop the program and we're going to shift towards public transportation." I mean it
1170-624: The night to put out the spot fires throughout the city. It was three days before the fire was finally fully extinguished. On October 15, 1973, Governor of Massachusetts Francis Sargent wrote a letter to President Richard Nixon saying: "Dear Mr. President, I am requesting that the City of Chelsea immediately be declared a federal disaster area . The city of Chelsea was swept by a fire yesterday which consumed 18 city blocks including 200 buildings. Over 1,100 people have been left homeless and 600 left jobless by this disaster. Emergency federal assistance
1209-484: The origin of the Great Chelsea fire of 1908 . The fire broke out in the "Rag Shop" District, made up of wood structured buildings and machine shops. By the time the first alarm had been raised at 3:56 p.m., the fire was well developed and by 4:01 p.m. it had jumped the street, rapidly engulfing six buildings that lay in its path. High winds made it impossible for the firefighters on scene to contain
Great Chelsea fire of 1973 - Misplaced Pages Continue
1248-517: The streets, and endangered the safety of firefighters and the public. Carried by that wind, embers fell behind the backs of firefighters creating brush and spot fires. Soon, the radiating heat of the area had preheated buildings hundreds of feet from the fire until they reached ignition temperatures and spontaneously exploded. Lacking a common radio frequency, the mutual aid fire companies were initially unable to get communications from Chelsea Command. In order to fix this issue, those in critical sections of
1287-460: The two components that are today called the Big Dig . Those were really part of that, if you will, anti-highway – "anti-highway's" probably the wrong name – pro-city decision that was made by Frank Sargent to shift towards a transportation strategy that would build the city instead of destroying it. And a major component of that was, stop building destructive roads. Another major component was, put
1326-428: The well-to-do suburban Boston town of Dover, Massachusetts , did not have to share any of the burden of desegregating Boston schools. Carl Sheridan, a former Dover police chief, said of the incident, "I think people will most remember him for the busing situation. I remember one time a bus load of demonstrators came out to Dover looking for Sargent and his house. But because the town had no street lights, they got out of
1365-418: Was a mistake and we're going to go in a different direction." It was a thrilling moment in the history of it. And then we actually moved in that new direction. I mean we shifted the funds, partly under Governor Sargent, partly under Governor Dukakis . Those monies that were going to go into destroying those neighborhoods or building the highways were shifted into refurbishing the commuter rail system, extending
1404-431: Was an avid fisherman on Cape Cod and became interested in the environment because he was frustrated by overfishing and the use of illegal nets. A dedicated conservationist, he delivered the keynote address at MIT on the first Earth Day in 1970. Sargent achieved renown among conservationists and advocates of a multi-modal urban transportation system by canceling most highway construction inside Route 128 , with
1443-454: Was doing. I enjoyed the experience on the Superior Court, meeting people and lawyers all over the State. I didn't want to leave, but the challenge of setting up an entirely new court was one I could not refuse." Sargent went on to speak of Chief Justice Hale and his five associates, "I have sought individuals who have a proven record of outstanding legal accomplishment, wisdom and good judgment. It
1482-435: Was their last chance to stop the fire. Deputy Chief William J. Capistran Jr. set up a heavy line and apparatus outside the school and firefighters with hand-lines manned the roof. Mobile teams of firemen operated behind the school to extinguish spot fires. Within five hours, 1,200 firefighters and 111 fire departments had responded to the call for assistance. Even once the fire was successfully contained, many worked throughout
1521-539: Was thrilling. It was thrilling for us that had worked hard on it, but also, in fairness to Sargent how often do you see a public official who gets up and says, "I was wrong"? I mean it was an incredibly courageous thing for Frank Sargent to do, and I'm a Democrat. I don't say many good things about republicans. But he was a great man. I mean he had worked for this program. He always had an environmentalist bent to him. [A] lot of people do political analysis as to why he did this or that. I think he just believed what he said. "This
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