Wrightsville Beach firemen are celebrating 100 years of service in the town. That alone is an accomplishment worthy of celebration, and celebrate they will. We should join them.
The beach-side community has always been vulnerable to fires because of high winds, wood-frame cottages and hotels in close proximity. Initially, lack of a fire department with necessary equipment contributed to the town’s susceptibility.
During the town’s first documented fire in 1894, there was no volunteer fire department. This blaze destroyed the Island Beach Hotel at the Hammocks (now Harbor Island), along with the property’s ballroom and pavilion. The hotel opened its doors in 1888, and offered 160 rooms, a grand ballroom and a 4,300-square-foot pavilion for concerts and dancing.
The town’s volunteer fire brigade formed in 1915. Many changes have taken place since then. It evolved from the volunteer group that employed carts, bucket brigades and existing water pipes —no fire hydrants — to battle the Great Fire of 1934, into a combination professional and on-call force that can respond in minutes with three fire engines capable of pumping 4,500 gallons of water onto a fire in one minute.
The town has endured its share of memorable fires.
Fire of 1919: The Seashore Hotel suffered its first major fire in 1919, when the building, which at the time boasted 110 rooms and entertainment like billiards and bowling alleys, was destroyed. A lack of wind and a later thunderstorm helped contain this blaze.
Fire of 1926: In the 1920s, Shell Island was the premier resort for African Americans with hotels, private cottages, bath halls, concessions and a dance pavilion. Visitors would travel from 50 cities in 10 different states because the resort was so unusual at the time. In June of 1926, a fire started in a dining room and, within a half hour, the pavilion was in ruins. With strong southerly winds and a lack of resources, only five buildings escaped the blaze. The resort was never rebuilt.
The Great Fire of 1934: On Sunday, Jan. 28, in the cold of the January off-season the peaceful, sleepy winter was shattered. At about 12:30 in the afternoon, smoke was seen billowing out of the Kitty Cottage, the well-known boarding house in which the fire began. It’s rumored that a cigarette lit during a card game started the fire, but others believe it was caused by an electric iron. The fire leveled 103 buildings, including the celebrated Oceanic Hotel.
Fire of 1948: In 90 minutes, five Wrightsville Beach structures were destroyed by fire that broke out around 3:30 pm, Tuesday, August 10, originating from an oil stove. The flames, fanned by a stiff southeast wind, destroyed properties owned by J.J. Pae at 538 and 540 South Lumina Ave. and his Judy Apartments at 540 Waynick Blvd. Luther T. Rogers’ 30-room Atlantic Inn at 542 South Lumina Ave. was also destroyed; the 15 occupants escaped injury.
Fire of 1955: After the Seashore Hotel survived the Great Fire of 1934, the owners of the Kitty Cottage leased the building and renamed it the Ocean Terrace Hotel. Later suffering damage from Hurricane Hazel in 1954, the hotel was ravaged by fire in 1955. By 1964, it was replaced by the Blockade Runner.
Fire of 1981: The fire that destroyed the Doak Apartments at 551 South Lumina Ave. on Dec. 6 destroyed the Hanover Seaside Club and did minor damage to the Carolina Temple Apartments. This is the only line of duty death the department has had. Wrightsville’s Wynn Plaza is dedicated to fireman Lt. Robert M. Wynn, 28 who lost his life in the blaze. Fireman John Dennison, 21, was treated for second-degree burns over 25 percent of his body.
Technology, like thermal imaging cameras, has significantly improved the department’s ability to extinguish a fire, while protective gear and use of self-contained breathing apparatus, as an example, have improved the department’s ability to protect the firefighting men and women.
The department moved into its state-of-the-art public safety facility on Bob Sawyer Drive in September 2010. Three components make up the Wrightsville Beach Fire Department: 12 career personnel, 25 paid on-call members and the department’s intern program.
The first lifeguards of Wrightsville Beach, employed by the hotels and clubs, kept watch over the beach from long surf boats anchored beyond the breakers. At the first sign of trouble, up came the anchor, and the boat raced to the scene, powered by the oars of six African-American men hired to assist in the lifesaving operations. A 1913 ordinance required the Hanover Seaside Club, the Seashore Hotel, the Carolina Yacht Club and the Oceanic Hotel to employ lifeguards and maintain a surf boat.
Today, Wrightsville Beach Ocean Rescue, a division of the town’s fire department, mans the beach strand. Under the supervision of program director Dave Baker, the department man 13 lifeguard stands, but only after competing for coveted spots on the team and undergoing a rigorous training regimen that includes a survival swim in conjunction with U.S. Coast Guard Station at Wrightsville Beach. The squad of 51 meets the highest standards of the United States Lifesaving Association, and won the regional lifesaving champion earlier this month — for the third consecutive year — and heads again to national ocean rescue competition in August. The team of 15 guards finished third in small beach and 10th overall out of 64 lifesaving teams from around the country in 2014. WBOR has been recognized for its efforts to educate the public about rip currents and beach safety.
Fire Chief Frank Smith and the Wrightsville Beach Fire Department will celebrate their centennial on January 28, with a BBQ plate fundraiser in the municipal park, fire apparatus display, fire safety exhibits and children’s bounce house beginning at 5 p.m., followed by the Thursday night concert in the park.
Let’s turn out to support them.
