Carmichaels, PA: Postal Employees Act Quickly When Fire
Threatens Post Office
By
Peggie Bednar, Postmaster, Carmichaels Pa 15320
Also see: Video (QuickTime)
The fire broke out around 4:55 PM. I was alerted by a customer
and went outside to see the smoke coming from the apartment on
the second floor of the adjacent building. I started to pound on
the apartment doors and was able to get two of the people out.
It spread very fast, within minutes the adjacent building was in
flames. More people came and continue to alert the occupants.
I returned to my office which was only a few feet away and began
to remove all mail, money and anything I could until I felt it
was not safe to continue.
After I made the phone call at 17:01 to A/Manager Post Office
Operations, Michele Boyd, I called Tony Manno, Postmaster
Waynesburg and asked, no TOLD him to get in his car and come
immediately to Carmichaels Post Office as it was about to catch
fire. He arrived within minutes.
I also called Pat Penich, RCA , to come and help me and Mike
Gresh, DSSA, get the mail out before the building was gone. She
only lives a short distance away and without hesitation Pat and
her husband John Penich, SDO Uniontown, were there in minutes.
Asking what I needed them to do and how could they help?!
Mike never waived from his position. He completed his close out,
and secured the cash retained in the safe along with the stock.
Mike and I began to pull all mail from the PO Boxes,
accountable, parcels, hold mail and mail to be delivered the
next day as quickly as we were physically able to.
VFC wanted the LLV's and our personal vehicles to be moved so
they could get their truck in position to fight this increasing
growing out of control fire. John, Pat and myself grabbed the
LLV's keys moved the three vehicles to a safe location. Mike and
I moved our vehicle and we all returned to the building and
continue to save as much time would allow. John and Pat began to
get the mail out in rolling stock to the LLVs location and
secured the outgoing mail in the vehicles. Mike and I continued
to pull and gather as much mail as we could.
When all mail was out of the building and the possibility of the
building catching fire was still a very real possibility, the
postal computers were our next things to get out but the
building. John gathered the scanners and then we lost
electricity. I felt it was no longer safe to remain in the
building and we all got out!
Then! While John was loading the vehicle with our dispatch mail
the power line started to explode over head. He jumped out of
the vehicle and stood guard over the mail until it was safe to
return to the vehicle. Pat secured the registered at all times,
never letting it out of her sight; as it contained our nightly
deposit.
Tony made several phone calls to ensure the mail would be
dispatched as I was focused on postal property and employee
safety. He contacted Jay Gisoni, Postmaster Washington MPO, to
ensure transportation would be on standby for the arrival of all
outgoing mail from the Waynesburg facility as Waynesburg is the
HUB office of all of Greene Counties outgoing mail.
Tony brought two of his employees with him, PTF City Carrier,
Penny Iams and TE City Carrier, Jamie Riley they all help
transfer the outgoing mail from the LLV's to the HCR truck along
with John, Pat and myself. Mike was in the HCR truck and
assisted the driver with the bed loading of my outgoing mail.
The rolling stock equipement (APCs, hamper and a gurney) were
also an issue as I was unable to secure them all in the LLVs.
All of us lifted the rolling stock from the ground up and into
the trucks. The outgoing mail was now safely taken away from the
scene.
The heroism of Mike, Pat and John should be noted as they did
what was needed and without hesitation rushing back and forth in
a building that could catch fire at any minute. They were driven
to save as much as they could of our postal property and the
community’s mail. The real threat of the post office building
catching fire was uncertain for a several hours as the fire
raged was out of control.
Mike, Pat, John, Tony, Penny and Jamie stayed by my side and as
long as the real threat of the post office catching fire was
genuine. Once the threat of fire spreading to the post office
was no longer real they left the scene.
Without their help I would not have been able to move the
vehicles for the VFC, secure the outgoing mail, and get all mail
remaining in the building out safely. |
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