So, what is a 4 alarm fire?
The alarms are a designation of how many units of firefighters had to be called out to deal with a fire. The 'first alarm' is the unit that first responds to the call. A unit can be multiple trucks and firefighting crews. If the fire spread, or is difficult to contain, a 'second alarm' is sent out and additional units from another firehouse are dispatched. Subsequently, a 'four alarm' fire, is one that took substantial time, man power, and resources to control and contain, and was the fourth call for aid on one fire.
Can the ratings go higher than 4 alarms?
Yes, though you don't hear of it very often.
I remember being thrilled with the beauty of the Provo Tabernacle when we went as a family to a Christmas concert there several years ago. Here is a picture montage of the Tabernacle then, and now.
This is a photo of the Tabernacle as it looked before the center bell tower was removed in 1950. The bell tower proved to be too much burden for the engineering of the roof, which sagged under its weight. The building was condemned twice before an architect came up with a solution to safely remove the central tower.
The Tabernacle as it looked before the fire. This building was one of the oldest in the state, dating back to the late 1870's and was on the national historic registry.
The Tabernacle this morning. This photo was taken not long after the roof caved in. Apparently, fire fighters felt they finally had the blaze under control enough to go in and finish extinguishing it, when the fire chief decided it was just too risky and kept them out. Just minutes later, the roof came down!
A BYU movie crew was filming a concert in the Tabernacle last night. According to the news media, a million dollars worth of electrical movie equipment was still in the building and was destroyed in the fire!
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