CARLINO BOMBING - 1931

 

Denver was a Mafia town once upon a time.

On March 17, 1931, a bomb leveled the home of Colorado mobster Pete Carlino on Federal Boulevard in Denver. Firemen combed the ruins for bodies but found none. Carlino, his wife and seven children had left town.

Carlino had a mark on his back. He was attempting to extend his booze network from Pueblo to Denver and survived an earlier ambush by gunmen on a Denver street.

Carlino's mobster brother, Sam, wasn't as lucky. He and another thug were shot dead in Denver on May 8, 1931.

Pete's luck faltered, too. He was mortally wounded on Sept. 10 or 11 while traveling to Canon City. His body was found on a rural road riddled with bullets.

In the aftermath, bombs rocked Denver on the night of Sept. 28, 1931.

In a strange twist, if thing weren't strange enough, the original bombing of Carlino's home was determined to be a a facade - a deliberate attempt by his gang to collect insurance money.

Three of them were convicted of the crime. Pete Carlino faced charges in the matter, too, and was out on bail when he succumbed.

WHITTIER APARTMENTS - 2021

Photo: Boulder Fire-Rescue

Flames devoured the Whittier Apartments complex on Pearl Street in Boulder, Colorado, on Oct. 19, 2021 - one of the largest structure fires in the city's history.

The blaze started on the exterior at about 3:30 a.m., according to Boulder Fire-Rescue, and danced across six buildings housing 81 units, causing the structures to partially collapse.

First-arriving police officers reported a 40-foot wall of flames.

911 received the initial report of fire at 3:32 a.m., firefighter were dispatched at 3:34 a.m. and arrived at 3:39 a.m., and the fire was declared under control at 5:40 a.m., Boulder Fire-Rescue said.

Boulder Rural Fire Rescue, Louisville Fire Protection District, Mountain View Fire Department and Boulder Emergency Squad provided mutual aid.

No serious injuries were reported.

According to a city press release issued Feb 4, 2022: "There were no ignitable liquids found nor any other found sources of ignition. Therefore, the cause of the fire has been declared undetermined, with no found evidence of intentional fire setting."

The Denver Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives joined the investigation.

The Denver Fire Department also assisted. 

ARSENAL PLANE CRASHES

The Rocky Mountain Arsenal in Commerce City was the scene of at least three aircraft accidents. On March 25, 1949, an Air Force C-45 on approach to Stapleton Field crashed in a snowstorm, killing three crewmembers, the Rocky Mountain News reported. On Dec,. 4, 1951, a United Air Lines training aircraft crashed at the arsenal, killing three. On Nov. 15, 1956, the arsenal's firefighters saved an airman pinned in the wreckage of a smoldering Air Force B-36.        

SUNCOR REFINERY - 2016

Photo: The Denver Channel
On Oct. 15, 2016, an orange plume billowed from the Suncor Refinery in Commerce City following a power outage. Emergency services responded and local officials issued a shelter in place order.

UNITED FLIGHT 328

Photo: NTSB Accident Report

On Feb. 20, 2021, United Airlines Flight 328 suffered an engine fire and fan blade separation that showered jet parts over the Front Range minutes after departing Denver International Airport.

The flight crew radioed a "Mayday" call, declared an emergency and returned the Boeing 777-222 to DIA where Denver Fire Department crash crews stood ready.

There were no injuries in the air or on the ground and the landing was smooth all things considered, however, debris punched a hole in the roof of a home in Broomfield.

Investigators determined a cockpit-controlled "spar valve" closed properly, preventing a more serious fuel-fed fire.

Flight 328 was bound for Honolulu, carrying 229 passengers.

Photo: Fox 31
Denver firefighters doused the engine with foam. 

Photo: Broomfield Police
Much of the debris landed in the Northmoor and Red Leaf sections of Broomfield, with an engine cowling plunking in the yard of a home on Elmwood Street in the vicinity of East 13th Avenue.

ON THE ICE - 2024

Photo: West Metro Fire Rescue
On Jan. 16, 2024, West Metro Fire Rescue struck a second alarm for a fire at the Rocky Mountain Motel on West Colfax Avenue at Harlan in Lakewood, Colorado. "The extremely cold weather made it challenging, as two fire hydrants on scene were frozen," West Metro said on Facebook. There was one injury.

LOCOMOTIVE - 2023

Photo: South Adams Fire
On Nov. 2, 2023, firefighters from South Adams and Brighton attended a BNSF Railway locomotive fire in Commerce City, Colorado, near the site of the old Rocky Mountain Arsenal. The locomotive was pulling a grain train.  No injuries were reported.

COLD CASE - 1981

Colorado Bureau of Investigation Files

On the evening of Feb. 8, 1981, the Denver Fire Department responded to a fire at the XV Logan Apartments on North Logan Street. Firefighters found the bodies of 13-month-old Gerald Perez and two others. The fire was ruled arson. Anyone with information to call the Denver Police Department.

AURORA INFERNOS - 2023

 

Photos: Aurora Fire-Rescue

Aurora, Colorado, was the scene of a pair of construction site infernos in December 2023.

The Dec. 16 blaze (bottom three photos) at East Colfax Avenue and Peoria Street went to five alarms.

It was "the largest in AFR’s history in terms of property loss, amount of fire apparatus used and duration until it was extinguished," according to an official press release.

"A total of 42 units from across the Denver metro area initially responded to the fire, and over 50 apparatus in total were used to fully extinguish the fire over a five-day period," the press release said.

Damage was estimated at $150 million.

The Dec. 14 fire (top two photos) occurred near the 7300-block of South Addison Court and went two three alarms.

PULMOTOR

The Pulmotor was an early 20th Century pressure-driven device for reviving people overcome by smoke, fumes or in respiratory distress. This is a photo of a victim of a waterworks tunnel accident in Cleveland, Ohio.

MISSOULA ROXY - 1994

Photo: City of Missoula

On Feb. 19, 1994, fire struck the Roxy Theater in Missoula, Montana, following the matinee. 

"Ruled as arson and unsolved to this day, rumors persisted, describing a sleazy underworld of nefarious characters and jealous lovers who had both been promised the theater" upon the owner's death, according to the Roxy's website.

Today, it is a community non-profit theater.

The Roxy was was built in 1937.

UNION PACIFIC MILL - 1910

Before the fire

In 1910, flames devoured the Union Pacific Rolling Mill in Laramie, Wyoming, which produced steel rails.

The roof collapsed shortly after the arrival of firefighters.

The Boomerang newspaper reported a locomotive spark ignited the fire. The Republican newspaper said the blaze started in one of the stacks.

CRUSADE FOR JUSTICE - 1973

Photo: Protest Denver
On March 17, 1973, an explosion rocked the Crusade for Justice building at 1547 Downing Street in Denver during a police raid and gun battle. The Crusade for Justice was an activist organization affiliated with the Chicano movement.

RUNS & WORKERS

On Aug. 29, 1951, the community of Lindon, in Washington County, Colorado, about 80 miles east of Denver, was the site of a major blaze. Five gasoline storage tanks exploded, Brush (Colorado) News-Tribune reported.

Photo: Washington Park Profile
Denver's Engine 3 laying out at rowhouse fire in 1970s or 1980s.

Photo: Colorado Springs Fire Department
House fire in Colorado Springs in March 2015 with Engine 1 and Truck 8 on scene.

Photo: Rock Springs Historical Museum
Flames engulf Point of Rocks filling station in Rock Springs, Wyoming, on Feb. 6, 1970. 

Fire report in Alamosa (Colorado) Journal on Dec. 15, 1905. 

On Jan. 4, 1897, fire destroyed the Wyoming State Hospital in Rock Spring, Wyoming. All patients were safely evacuated. The institution was rebuilt and renamed the Wyoming General Hospital.

Photo: Poudre Fire Authority
On the job in Fort Collins, Colorado, in late 1920s or 1930s.  The pump is churning and the hose lines are charged.

Photo: Lake County Geneaology 

Fire roars at Lake County Courthouse in Leadville, Colorado. Date pf photo unknown.

Fire destroyed the Union Pacific Railroad depot in Laramie, Wyoming, on Oct. 17, 1917 .

Greeley's telephone operator traced a false fire alarm call at the request of the city's fire chief, as reported in the Dec. 11, 1922 edition of the Greeley (Colorado) Tribune.

BROOMFIELD - 2018

Photo: North Metro Fire Rescue
On June 27, 2018, North Metro Fire Rescue crews battle a fierce house fire in the 7000-block of West 119th Place in Broomfield, Colorado. "All residents were able to evacuate safely in time, but the house was destroyed by the heavy flames and smoke, and the family lost some of their pets in the home," North Metro said.

BAKER RESERVOIR - 2023

Photo: Adams County Fire Rescue
On Feb. 12, 2023, firefighters rescued a 155-pound St. Bernard that fell through the ice on Baker Reservoir in Adams County, Colorado. The dog's owner "did the exact right thing by calling 911, not going out to the ice, and giving dispatchers the information as to exactly where they were located," Adams County Fire Rescue said.

COLE CREEK - 1923

Photo: Casper College

A remote railroad bridge collapsed east of Casper, Wyoming, after days of rain and a passenger train went off the tracks at the washout into Cole Creek, killing an estimated 30 people on Sept. 27, 1923.

"Being on a curve, the bridge was not visible to the headlights of the train until it was too late," Wikipedia said. "The only surviving member of the train or engine crew stated that the emergency brakes were only applied just before the train plunged off the rails."

Roundhouse, track and bridge gangs responded on rescue trains from Casper and came upon travelers trapped atop a sleeping car, according to Wikipedia.

"A cable rope obtained from the Big Muddy oil field was thrown over to the marooned sleepers" and "men, women and children went hand-over-hand from the sleeper to the east bank, a distance of more than 150 feet," the Dallas Morning News said.

Denver's Rocky Mountain News reported a man crossed the cable with a baby in his arms "tied in an old gunny sack."  

Wikipedia said the train consisted of seven cars, and was operated jointly by the Burlington and the Colorado and Southern. The Associated Press said Train No. 30 was bound for Denver from Casper. The locomotive and smoking car were completely submerged, AP said.

This is an excerpt of a dispatch on the front page of the Sept. 30, 1927, edition of the Rocky Mountain News by Deane H. Dickason:

CASTLEWOOD DAM - 1933

At 11th Street in Denver

On Aug. 3, 1933, the Castlewood Dam crumbled, sending a deluge roaring for many miles.

Up to nine inches of rain caused the dam to fail and seven people died in Denver, according to the National Weather Service.

"Pounding down on Franktown, tiny village on a hillside four miles below the dam, the surging tide swept on six miles to Parker, at times on a mile-wide front, and picked up tons of debris as it swirled into suburban Denver and sent Cherry Creek on a rampage through the heart of the city," the Associated Press reported.

"Denver police and firemen with sirens going full blast sped through the Country club residential district warning everyone to flee from their homes in the lowland area. Emergency ambulance corps took invalids from many homes," AP said.

SANBORN MAPS

 

Sanborn Maps are detailed diagrams of U.S. cities and towns published in the 19th and 20th centuries by The Sanborn Map Company for the insurance industry to assess risks. Sanborn produced maps detailing 12,000 America communities.

FROM THE EDITOR

 Your editor had some bad breaks medically in 2023 and is now back in the fold.  

AERIAL ATTACK - 2023

Photos: Denver Fire Department
Street scene of commercial building fire at Santa Fe Drive and West 13th Avenue in Denver on Feb. 6, 2023.  

FORNEY MUSEUM - 2023

Photos: Vinny Del Giudice
In 2023, Denver's Forney Museum of Transportation hosted the "Fire Trucks to the Rescue!" exhibit. Two of the rigs displayed - old Engine 6 of the Denver Fire Department and old City Engine 4 of the Fort Morgan Fire Department - are owned by Kevin Sweeney, retired chief of operations at North Metro Fire Rescue.

DIESEL DALMATIAN

Photo: Adams County Fire Rescue
Dalmatians, it is said, have natural affinity to horses. In days of old, the breed would help protect fire horses. This contemporary pooch, it seems, has an affinity for diesels.

HOOF VS HEAD - 1904

Image: Pueblo Fire Museum
Firehouse death of Pueblo firefighter Andrew Baker, 42, of No. 1 steamer, as reported by the Pueblo Chieftain newspaper on June 16, 1904. Baker was cleaning a horse stall when an equine named Jim, who had a habit of biting, kicked him. Moments earlier, when Baker entered the stall, Jim snapped at him - and Baker tapped Jim with a broom.

DOG'S BEST FRIEND

Photo: West Metro Fire
West Metro firefighter clutching canine evacuee on the fireground. West Metro serves the Denver suburbs of Lakewood and Wheat Ridge and the old Barcroft fire district.

RUNS & WORKERS

The fire department in Pueblo, Colorado, acquired an auto with money "saved in the purchase of horse feed," according to The Pueblo Sun of Nov. 23, 1909.

 

On Feb. 6, 2022, firefighters rescued a person from a house fire in the 3500-block of 35th Avenue in Greeley, Colorado. "Ladder 5 crew arrived on scene to find a working fire and immediately initiated an interior search of the structure," the fire department said on Facebook. B-Shift was on duty that evening.

Blaze at Greeley's old Tolman store at 8th Avenue and 7th Street in October 1956.

On Dec. 26, 1968, fire struck the old Sterling Theater at 926 9th Ave. in Greeley. The theater was undergoing demolition and much of the floor had been removed.

Item appearing in Feb. 7, 1903, edition of Colorado Daily Chieftain of Pueblo.

Greeley firefighters rescued two people from a fire in a two-story house in the 800-block of 4th Street on Aug. 22, 2021.

On the scene and tending to a troubled auto in the early 1960s.

Photos: Greeley Fire Department On Jan. 6, 1970, fire swept the construction site of the library at Colorado State College - today the University of Northern Colorado - in Greeley. Firefighters endured bitter cold.