WPBFD History

The days of "one man rule" were coming to an end for the fire department. West Palm Beach, as a result of state legislation, established a civil service system to pro- vide greater protection and more stable working condi- tions for all city employees on June 1, 1939. The Civil Service Board was charged with "encouraging and pro- moting a proper personnel system for the classified per- sonnel of the city, inspiring public confidence in the city service, and providing an opportunity for honorable and useful employment." The first board meeting was held on October 30 of that year. Board members were C. R. Dor- sey, Chairman; R. M. Grice, John L. Griffith, C. L. Pierce and John B. Cook. No longer would Chief Sadler or any future chief have the power to control every aspect of a fireman's public and private life. Fire losses for 1938-39 were $13,923.67. Chief Sadler’s department still numbered 35 men. Charles Caesar, the fireman who had monitored his weather equipment during the 1928 hurricane, left the department in 1939. When he first joined in 1926 he made $130 a month. He left earning $120 a month and was paid in scrip. When asked why he left, Caesar an- swered, "Well, we had a peak of maybe four fires, some of it grass fires [a week] . . . there're other times where we never left the station in three weeks. That becomes bor- ing. So I took the postal exam . . . started working 65 cents an hour." Caesar's pay had been 33 cents an hour at the fire department and he had to furnish his own uni- forms. 1940 Fire personnel have been called out to perform many duties in the public interest over the years. The log of January 22, 1940, reflected one such unusual call: "Reeves - #2 - B - T 210 Wenonah Pl. - for Mrs. Weems to kill rattlesnake." Some form of running card system to designate what units responded to certain locations had been put in opera- tion after the addition of North and South Borough Sta- tions in 1923. The earliest copy of a running card in exis- tence today was dated April 14, 1940. One unique aspect of that system was that the running card changed at 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. There must have been some confusion when alarms sounded at those approximate times. Basi- cally units covered alarms as follows: Number 1 Station - from Belvedere Road to 24th Street. Ladder - area bounded on the south by Okee- chobee Road, on the west by Georgia and Sapo- dilla Avenues, on the north by 7th Street, and on the east by Lake Worth. Also all buildings 3 or more stories in height, schools, and hospitals.

The night of April 17, 1938, proved to be a busy one for firemen at the Central Station. The first fire call came in at 9:00 p.m. By the time units arrived at 517- 19th Street there was nothing that could be done to save the house. The men were called back at 11:04 to douse a flare-up in the debris. The alarm sounded again at 5:50 a.m. This fire was also well underway and resulted in a total loss to a two story garage and bar at 701-4th Street. There were some tired firemen who left the morn- ing of April 18 to attend the State Firemen's convention in Ft. Lauderdale. The main topic of discussion was the pro- posed state fireman's pension bill. Fire losses for 1937-38 were $18,932.79, nearly double the figure from the year before. One of the largest fire losses for the 1938-39 fiscal year occurred on the afternoon of October 6, 1938. The fire started in the third floor bedroom of a home at 1413 Okeechobee Road and spread rapidly. The fire of unde- termined origin resulted in $5,000 damage to the resi- dence of Thurman C. McGee. Mr. McGee, who was ill and at home at the time, escaped without injury. 1939 The Lake Worth Fire Department called for assis- tance on the afternoon of February 15, 1939. They had been battling a raging brush fire that eventually threat- ened a number of homes in the area of First Avenue South between Sixth Street and C Street near the Seaboard Rail- road. Lake Worth Fire Chief R. N. Hershey called the fire "the most dangerous brush fire the city ever has had." West Palm Beach units helped to control the blaze before any properties were damaged. In 1939 the Florida legislature took steps to provide retirement benefits for firemen. A law was enacted au- thorizing municipalities to create a retirement fund and select a board for administration of the fund. The Act of May 23, 1939, authorized funding from: (a) the net proceeds of a one percent excise or license tax levied against certain insurance com- panies on their gross receipts of premiums col- lected within the city on fire and tornado insur- ance, (b) two percent of the salary of each fire- man, (c) all fines and forfeitures collected, (d) two percent of the monthly pension of firemen after they are retired, and (e) all sums derived by millage assessment for the purpose of aug- menting the fund. The West Palm Beach Fireman's Relief and Pension Fund was created as a result of this legislation. The city commission decided that direct millage assessments would not be used to provide funds.

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