NOT ENOUGH can be said about the outstanding job Baltimore City firefighters did in extinguishing the toxic inferno under Howard Street. With little regard for their personal safety, firefighters ventured into the heat- and fume-filled darkness of a 1.7-mile tunnel that could have collapsed from the pressure of a burst water main.
Now that the last charred cars of the wrecked, chemical-laden train have been removed from the tunnel, the whole community can take a deep breath of relief.
While traffic congestion and other inconveniences are likely to continue for weeks, not a single firefighter was seriously injured in bringing the disaster under control. This certainly speaks to the high level of professionalism of our firefighters.
Last week's freight train derailment happened at an interesting time for the fire department. For the past seven months, Mayor Martin O'Malley has been searching nationwide for a successor to Fire Chief Herman Williams Jr., who retired in February after 47 years of service.
For some time, it has seemed likely the administration would go for an outsider. However, the sterling performance of city firefighters may have revived the chances of such local candidates as Battalion Chief Hector L. Torres and Acting Chief Carl E. McDonald.
"We are not stupid. We realize things have changed a little bit," said an O'Malley aide, adding, "It makes the job difficult to go outside, but doesn't make it impossible."
Last year, the Greater Baltimore Committee and the Presidents' Roundtable urged the mayor to overhaul the fire department and reorient it more toward emergency services. The rationale: Day in, day out, more than 70 percent of the calls to the fire department are for medical emergencies. Yet the city has so few medic units available that fire trucks, instead of ambulances, often are sent to handle life-and-death emergencies.
In the aftermath of last week's disaster, nothing has fundamentally changed. The tradition-bound firefighting agency still must be transformed into an up-to-date emergency response force. This will require a total reevaluation of the department's training, culture, priorities and equipment.
Indeed, in a city of aging, decrepit infrastructure, firefighters in the future are likely to be increasingly called to handle complicated emergencies, in which firefighting is just part of the overall job.
Baltimore's firefighters have demonstrated over the past few days that they are imaginative and ready for difficult challenges. This is a solid foundation on which to build.
Now that the last charred cars of the wrecked, chemical-laden train have been removed from the tunnel, the whole community can take a deep breath of relief.
Last week's freight train derailment happened at an interesting time for the fire department. For the past seven months, Mayor Martin O'Malley has been searching nationwide for a successor to Fire Chief Herman Williams Jr., who retired in February after 47 years of service.
For some time, it has seemed likely the administration would go for an outsider. However, the sterling performance of city firefighters may have revived the chances of such local candidates as Battalion Chief Hector L. Torres and Acting Chief Carl E. McDonald.
"We are not stupid. We realize things have changed a little bit," said an O'Malley aide, adding, "It makes the job difficult to go outside, but doesn't make it impossible."
Last year, the Greater Baltimore Committee and the Presidents' Roundtable urged the mayor to overhaul the fire department and reorient it more toward emergency services. The rationale: Day in, day out, more than 70 percent of the calls to the fire department are for medical emergencies. Yet the city has so few medic units available that fire trucks, instead of ambulances, often are sent to handle life-and-death emergencies.
In the aftermath of last week's disaster, nothing has fundamentally changed. The tradition-bound firefighting agency still must be transformed into an up-to-date emergency response force. This will require a total reevaluation of the department's training, culture, priorities and equipment.
Indeed, in a city of aging, decrepit infrastructure, firefighters in the future are likely to be increasingly called to handle complicated emergencies, in which firefighting is just part of the overall job.
Baltimore's firefighters have demonstrated over the past few days that they are imaginative and ready for difficult challenges. This is a solid foundation on which to build.
