WPBFD History

CHAPTER SEVEN The War Years 1941 to 1945 It is better to deserve honors and not have them than to have them and not deserve them. Mark Twain

trol the panicked man. "I was so tired I couldn't raise my arms . . . I got on my back and I managed to float to the shore . . . I just barely made it," said Pagan. After Juergen disappeared under water, fire person- nel immediately called on the radio for assistance from Central Fire Station. Boats, a pulmotor, and grappling equipment were raced to the scene as additional men re- sponded to the call.

1941 Salaries remained low through the 1930s and into the 1940s. Austin Bennett joined the department in Feb- ruary of 1941 and recalled that his pay was $110 a month. He went on to say, " . . . now it don't seem like much but it was pretty good . . . you could live on it . . ." Bennett, like many others, left the department to serve his country in World War II but returned to the fire department in 1946. The West Palm Beach Fire Department covered not only the city limits, but also the rural areas where no fire service was available. One such example appears in the #2 Station log of February 28, 1941: Fire call to Wabasso Drive, West Gate. Norton with B2 responding CC2. Fire was frame dwelling owned by Frank Levi. Bldg. was a total loss. Cause of fire possible baby chick brooder over heating. Time 8:05 p.m. back 9:10 p.m. Off duty men reporting H. C. Muller. (Signed) J. H. Juergen Capt. Ps. Received from Ass't. Chief. Mr. Carl McPipe was burned on the left shoulder, left arm and eyes and top of head. He went in to the house looking for the children. Draft closed door and he got confused. And was helped out by another man. Mr. McPipe was removed to the Good Samaritan Hospital by Ass't Chief Larrabee. Was later returned home by Chief Sadler. On Monday afternoon, June 23, 1941, Assistant Chief Ray Larrabee and Captain Harry Juergen were con- ducting a drill in the Stub Canal turning basin at Howard Park. A hose line under pressure was being used to pro- pel a small boat from one side of the small lake to the other. The exercise simulated possible extinguishment methods that could be used in combating marine fires. Shortly after 4:00 p.m. the boat capsized throwing both men into the water. Larrabee grabbed Juergen, who was unable to swim. The assistant chief then managed to grasp the overturned boat, but Juergen continued to strug- gle frantically causing Larrabee to lose his hold. Fireman W. A. "Dub" Pagan, standing on the shore, jumped into the water to assist, but like Larrabee, was unable to con-

Captain J. Harry Juergen

A crowd estimated at 1,500 to 2,000 people swarmed the banks, at times hampering rescue efforts. Divers, us- ing helmets and air lines, were unsuccessful in attempts to locate Juergen. By this time five boats, including one from the Coast Guard, were crowding the small lake. A softball game continued in the adjacent park, a sharp con- trast to the seriousness of the rescue efforts under way. At 6:28 p.m. Orrin Randolf, of 503-29th Street, using a home made diving helmet, located Juergen's body. The youthful Randolf told bystanders that the body had been found in a hole on the bottom some 50 feet from the southeast shore. Firemen began artificial respiration and, according to news reports, thought at one point they de- tected signs of life. Juergen was raced by ambulance to

1