On December 25, 2024, just before 10 PM, multiple calls poured into the City of Albany’s emergency communication center that 530 2nd Street was on fire. The dispatcher dropped the alarm of fire tones for engine seven, engine one, rescue two, engine two, rescue nine, rescue one, engine ten, truck four, truck two, the rescue squad, engine eleven, Mohawk Ambulance Service, and the battalion chief responded to the scene. Engine seven arrived in the front of the structure and had heavy fire blowing out the rear of the building. Engine seven took the front of the building and had heavy smoke pushing from the roofs of three buildings and heavy smoke pushing from the main fire building out the front windows and roof area. Command transmitted the signal thirty and transmitted the second alarm. Firefighters deployed a inch and three-quarter hand line to the rear of the structure and immediately went to work attempting to knock down the heavy fire condition. Firefighters in the front of the building located a burn victim and firefighters immediately without hesitation transported the victim to the hospital.

Within a few minutes of crews getting on scene the heavy fire in the rear of the building had extended into the other structures and thick heavy black smoke began to push from all three buildings. Firefighters on scene immediately went to work making sure everybody was out of the structures. Firefighters quickly began to deploy multiple hand lines into the structures and made their way to the second floor as they had heavy smoke showing from all of the cock lofts. The freezing temperatures on scene quickly began to create havoc as the roadway where the water was flowing into the engines and from the hand lines quickly began to freeze into a sheet of ice. Firefighters on scene attempted to connect to a nearby fire hydrant, but the hydrant was completely frozen, and firefighters began to connect to the next engine to supply tank water to the primary engine on scene. Command began to request additional engines to the scene as they continued to have hydrant problems on scene.

Heavy fire in the main fire building had consumed the structure and command made the tactical decision to write off the building and attempt to stop the fire from spreading at the next house. As firefighters were working inside of the structure heavy fire blew through the front of the main fire building and thick heavy black turbulence smoke began to push from the windows, eaves, and the roof of the secondary building. Thick heavy smoke began to push out the bravo side of the third building and out the front door of the structure. Firefighters made a push up to the second floor and began to make a aggressive interior attack on the third building in the row house. The pump operator of engine one, was notified that engine eleven was able to successfully get a hydrant to open and was establishing a water supply. As firefighters continued to work inside of the exposure structures, conditions inside of the exposure buildings continued to worsen as the heavy fire condition had traveled across the common cocklofts and in the walls.

Engine seven’s pump operator quickly hopped up on top of the rig and positioned the deck gun into the windows of the house and opened up the valve and began to put a master stream through the front window of the main fire building to knock down some of the heavy fire condition. As he was doing so heavy smoke continue to push from the front of the two exposure buildings and fire had ignited out of the common space between the building. Firefighters on the roof of the structure quickly began to vent the building and thick heavy and violent turbulence smoke continue to push from the building. Firefighters in the rear of the structure requested a 2 1/2-inch hand line to the rear of the building with a blitz fire to attempt to get the heavy fire condition in the rear of the structure under control. Firefighters in the front of the structure deployed ground ladders to the front of the building and began to vent the front windows on the structure. Firefighters inside of the structure notified command that they were becoming overrun by fire and we’re backing out of the structure.

Firefighters in the front of the building took out the windows on the second floor of the building and had heavy smoke pushing from all of the windows that became vented. Firefighters on the bravo side of the third structure utilize a hand line and began to put the stream into the attic area of the third building as they had heavy fire pushing out the side vent. Firefighters on scene began to run multiple 2 1/2-inch hand lines to the truck companies on scene to feed them to be able to go into master stream operations. Command requested the dispatcher to transmit the evacuation tones for all of the firefighters inside of the building to exit the structure as they were going to go into master stream operations and defensive operations. As firefighters came out of the building, they began to change their air bottles out and grab a bottle of water quickly while additional firefighters set up master streams in the street. Heavy fire blew through all three of the buildings and through the roof of the structures.

Firefighters in the rear of the structure set up lighting and master streams as firefighters cut a hole in the fence and ran a supply line from the next street over. As firefighters were working in the front of the structure, firefighters from the truck companies were in position and had water being supplied to the ladder pipe and crews went to work knocking down the heavy fire in the roof area. Firefighters in the front of the structure continued to utilize master stream operations along with firefighters utilizing hand lines to hit the remaining fire in the primary fire building. As firefighters continue to utilize master stream operations the heavy fire conditions inside of the buildings quickly subsided and the street had a thick heavy layer of smoke and steam throughout the area. Within 20 minutes firefighters were able to utilize multiple master streams and bring the incident under control.

Firefighters remained on scene for an extended period of time hitting hotspots after the incident was brought under control. Fire Investigators are working to determine the cause of the fire. The individual that was transported to Albany Medical Center was listed in stable but critical condition. No firefighters on scene sustained any injuries. Firefighters went back into service later in the morning.