When two Central City firemen entered a home on Fourth Street on March 14, they were looking for a fire that was about to ignite in the air around them. John Gore and Caleb Phelps were caught in a moment most firefighters never see, the moment when a flashover occurs.
A flashover is when every combustible surface in an enclosed space rapidly and simultaneously ignites. When it happened that day on Fourth Street, Gore and Phelps saw the warning signs around them and agreed to back out of the house and regroup.
With little to no visibility inside the home, a moment of disorientation sent Gore back inside. As he was exiting, Gore thought he heard Phelps call out from behind him and rushed back inside. Phelps was safe outside, but then heard Gore calling him from inside and went to get him out.
“It was quick, it got super hot in the snap of a finger,” Gore said. “Everything happened in about a minute and 30 seconds.”Phelps has his helmet fitted with a camera, which captured the chaotic moment. Near-total blackness gave way to a bright bluish light, as the particles in the smoke around them ignited. “It dropped right on us,” Phelps said.
The firemen said this is a rare moment to get caught in. A fire is usually past the point of flashover when units arrive on the scene, or the water they use to fight the fire cools it enough to keep that moment from happening at all.
On that day, the water didn’t seem to help cool the area fast enough. Extremely hot smoke and blackout conditions created a moment of uncertainty for Gore. Thinking his partner was still inside, he knew he had to go back for him. When Gore didn’t come out, Phelps knew he had to go back and get him.
Gore sustained minor injuries in the fire – his earlobes and the sides of his cheeks were singed. His trademark handlebar mustache stayed in tact.
The equipment Gore was wearing shows just how hot the fire was. His helmet is now charred black, and the face mask had to be replaced. Cracked in a web-like pattern across its surface, the mask is rated to sustain 450 degrees.
Once the crew returned to the fire station and assessed the damage to their gear, they realized just how hot it was inside the house. “We pushed our gear to the limit,” Gore said.
Gore said respect for fire is an important part of being a firefighter, and in a dark and smoky scene like the one on March 14, verbal communication is key. He’s not sure what happened in the chaotic moment, but leaving a partner in a dangerous situation is out of the question.
