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Statement from the Fire Chief's on the Fatal fire that occurred on November 7, 2021.
On Sunday November 7, 2021, our community suffered a tragic fire that resulted in the loss of life of one of our residents. Fire Department Mount Joy offers our deepest sympathy to the family of Mr. David Sanchez. We fondly remember Mr. Sanchez from around town and are saddened like many of you in his passing. FDMJ recognizes and commends Mr. Sanchez’s military service. He was a proud veteran.
During the same fire, 6 residents of the same apartment building on North Jacob St. lost their apartments and most of their belongings. While they have found new housing on a temporary basis, it will take some time and support for them to recover fully from this loss.
Fire Department Mount Joy would like to thank all of the mutual aid fire departments and EMS who assisted at the scene. We also would like to thank Mount Joy Borough Police Department and recognized the heroic attempt by Officer Steffen to enter and search the burning apartment. Thank you to the Mount Joy Borough Authority for providing one of the best water systems in the county. Thank you to Stacie Gibbs from Mount Joy Borough in enforcing codes that make these properties safer. Thank you to Mayor Tim Bradley who responded to the scene and assisted the property owner and the tenants in securing temporary housing. Without all your efforts, Sunday’s tragedy could have been much worse.
Many have reached out to FDMJ asking about our firefighters. A fatal fire is a difficult event for a fire department. We spend so much time trying to avoid such a tragedy through public education, training, drills and response. Physically, everyone is fine. We suffered some minor equipment damage and that too can be fixed or replaced. Emotionally, we mourn this loss just like the rest of the community. Everyone is holding up through this and we have supports in place. We are keeping an eye on our crews from Sunday and working to ensure their continued health and safety. The volunteers at FDMJ take their role in the community very seriously. Our mission is to save lives and protect property and on Sunday, we weren’t able to do that. We have already discussed the incident internally and there is strong commitment to make ourselves and our department even better. |
