Published: September 20, 2008 10:40 pm         

Fire captain has held lives of comrades, citizens in his hands

Beckley firefighters battled the 1986 Lillys’ Crown Jewelers fire in howling winds, with some climbing to the building’s roof.

Gary Raines was at the building’s front and driving the ladder truck — possibly providing the only way down if his fellow firefighters had to retreat.

For 34 years, Raines, a captain and “A Shift” commander for the Beckley Fire Department, has often held the lives of his fellow firefighters and citizens in his hands. While Raines adores his job and has no immediate plans to retire, this responsibility is one he does not handle lightly.

“It’s a very awesome responsibility,” he said. “It’s hard to put into words.”

Raines was hired by the fire department in 1974. The year before, he said he was working at the old Acme Supermarket in Beckley with two city firefighters, Harold Statzer and Charlie Clemons. Both men, like most city firefighters, had second jobs. They encouraged the then-23-year-old Raines to take the test.

“Both of them got a real kick out of me,” Raines said. “It was my visions of firemen and their camaraderie. I found out they were really true. You live at the firehouse with one another. They’ve got your back.”

Firefighters, Raines discovered, watch over one another on fire calls and off. They hosted Christmas dinners, and went on fishing trips together — although Raines joked they always had a knack for finding themselves in terrible weather with the latter.

Raines also believes he handled more fires in the earlier part of his career. He attributes this to increased fire safety education and code enforcement, plus what he said was good work by those charged with fire safety education.

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Raines was on duty during the infamous Lillys’ Crown Jewelers fire in downtown Beckley. He was rushed from the old Station No. 1 on South Kanawha Street to then-Station No. 2 on Third Avenue for the ladder truck.

“I remember the wind,” he said. “That was the worst factor — the wind.”

Raines’ job during that blaze was operating the ladder truck from the building’s front. Because some of his fellow firefighters had gone to the roof, he could have been largely responsible for his fellow firefighters’ lives.

“I was really busy and making sure the truck was placed properly,” he said. “I had to try and do this right. I knew this could probably be their only way off the building.

“That was a serious fire. It could have been their only way down — with that ladder. I was concerned, from my vantage point, for the safety of everyone and what was happening.

“It really dawns on you. You had air conditioning units going. There was a lot of activity. There were all sorts of noises. There were a lot more people in downtown than there are now. There were a lot of bystanders — and your breathing apparatus, the fire, the crowd.

“From the time I started here, the thought of a downtown fire was the most daunting, and that thought never leaves you. You have a lot of old and large buildings.”

Firefighters were at the Lillys’ scene for a few days, having to still deal with “hot spots” after the blaze was finally extinguished, Raines said.

Raines would go on to battle several dangerous and even deadly fires. Several of them remain etched into firefighters’ and citizens’ minds years later.

“With 34 years, I’ve seen a few,” he said.

Another blaze Raines said he would never forget is the one that destroyed the old Ventureland Video store in the late 1980s. The fire began after an employee had apparently cleaned with a solvent. Chemicals from videotapes combined with the extreme midsummer heat made this fire extremely dangerous.

“It was HOT,” Raines said. “It was pitch black. You could hear the fire, but you never saw it. It was pretty brutal.”

The fire was located in the building’s top, he said. Firefighters had to attack one area of the ceiling, and move in farther and farther until the job was done.

Raines has also handled blazes in which people did not make it out alive. One was a “terrible” fire at a public housing complex on Barber Avenue. It happened right before he was promoted to captain. A man died.

“I don’t think you’ll ever get used to that,” he said.

“… You don’t have the time to be scared or think during the event. When you’ve had time to cool down and think, everything sinks in, usually.”

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Sept. 11 was an event that would forever change firefighting.

Raines remembered being in his driveway when the terrorist attacks happened. He walked into his home and saw the coverage on TV.

“It just sticks in your mind,” he said. “It’s eerie.”

One aspect of Sept. 11 that sticks with Raines was that many members of the media did not know what firefighters’ PASS (Personal Alert Safety System) devices were. These devices, in use for several years, make a chirping sound when a firefighter wearing one is motionless. These are used to locate fallen firefighters in dark, smoky conditions when visibility is poor.

“All of those motion detectors were going off at the same time,” he said. “Under that rubble, you could hear a lot of them.

“We have never lost one here during my time, and I hope that continues. That’s my greatest hope.”

The general public, Raines believes, was always grateful for emergency responders’ work. But after Sept. 11, they noticed so much gratitude.

“People would thank you before that, but now, they really appreciate you,” he said.

Raines said he has never been to Ground Zero, but if he were traveling in that area, he would have to stop there.

“I know it changed this country forever,” he said. “We need to pay our respects.

“There’s a gentleman in Beckley who is a retired New York City fireman,” he said. “He told me a fire can get you here as easily as it can in New York City. There’s a common bond in the dangers we all face throughout the country.”

But this was not the only time tragedy struck fellow firefighters.

Raines, a member of the Beckley Fire Department’s Honor Guard, traveled with other city firefighters to a June 2007 memorial service in Charleston, S.C. There, nine firefighters were killed while battling a furniture store blaze. It was the greatest single loss of firefighters since the World Trade Center collapse on Sept. 11.

He said more than 20,000 people from across the country attended — most of them, fellow firefighters.

“I saw firefighters that rode motorcycles from Minnesota,” he said. “They came from Canada, Europe ... New York City brought their whole Emerald Society. I was so touched by that outpouring.”

At the service, Raines met former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, then a Republican presidential candidate.

“I saw an SUV, and the window rolled down,” Raines said. “I thought it would be an event planner, but when that window rolled down, it was Rudy Giuliani! ... That was a real Forrest Gump-like moment.”

Raines said he gave one of his business cards to Giuliani, who also signed another one of Raines’ cards. Giuliani also thanked him for the job he did as a firefighter. Raines now keeps that signed card in his copy of Giuliani’s book, “Leadership.”

“I thought he did a great job on 9/11,” Raines said. “I gave him the benefit of the doubt because he had a lot to do. I was beside a big ol’ firefighter from New York City, and he got a kick out of that.”

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One of the biggest differences in firefighting now versus firefighting when Raines began his career is technology and more advanced equipment, he said.

“It’s ever-changing.”

In the 1970s, breathing apparatuses were much more primitive, but they have vastly improved, Raines said. Gear was much heavier, and most of it was rubber. That has changed as well. Firefighters also have chemical monitors and thermal imaging cameras at their disposal, too.

Also, firefighters must respond to so many more types of emergencies, namely, ones dealing with hazardous materials, he said.

“The job has changed, and 9/11 really changed that,” he said. “You really wear a lot of hats. There’s a lot to keep up with.”

Now, at 57, he is constantly amazed at the new technology he has seen develop — which his younger counterparts get to use, as well.

“If you see these changes in your career, you wonder what the younger guys are going to see in theirs,” he said.

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Raines said one of his greatest mentors was the late Capt. Allen Bonds. He proudly displayed a department photo of Bonds in his office.

“He was a really good guy,” Raines said. “He took an interest in you and in everyone’s morale. He wanted people to learn. He was always positive.

“… People do live up or down to your expectations. I’m a big believer in morale.

“… I learned from all of (the veterans). They were great to teach you, and I took something from all of them individually.”

Now, Raines is the mentor. As the senior member of the department and a shift commander, Raines’ job is largely monitoring emergency situations — and he is charged with the safety of other firefighters, other emergency responders and civilians.

“There’s a lot of responsibility. Everyone here makes me look good — better than what I deserve. They are all great to work with.

“It’s very hard to watch these young men go in,” he said. “It’s harder to watch them go in than it was for me to go in, myself. With all of these years of experience, you always have these ‘what ifs’. But I’m amazed to see the jobs they do.”

Raines said he is extremely proud of all his fellow firefighters — both the seasoned veterans and the youngsters still getting their feet wet.

“I’m proud of my shift, and I’m proud of this whole department,” he said. “There’s not a guy here who wouldn’t do their very best for the citizens in whatever they are called to do. I’m fortunate that I’m in a job that has such a brotherhood. There are a lot of characters here. We are all family. We are all brothers.

“I have complete confidence in everyone here. We train hard. We want to do a good job. A basic rule of thumb is that you do a little to save a little. You do a lot to save a lot. You do nothing to save nothing. That’s a fundamental concept in training.”

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Being a Beckley firefighter has been a personally rewarding job, Raines emphasized.

Raines said he was “privileged” to be named Beckley’s Firefighter of the Year in 2006. Before that, he was named Young Firefighter of the Year in 1988.

“I’ll never be that again,” he quipped.

Serving the public has become something Raines, a deacon at the North Beckley Church of Christ, said he wants to do even after he goes off duty. In the past, he and other firefighters coached Little League Baseball for the Babe Ruth League in Beckley. The firefighting coaches were very competitive with one another — with their teams coming in first, second and third places, one year.

Raines, like many other firefighters, also works to raise money for the Muscular Dystrophy Association with “fill the boot” fundraisers.

Raines said his most gratifying experiences have been ones where he works with young people. During his career, he has given numerous tours of the fire stations, plus worked with several fire department “mascots.” One was a remote-controlled fire hydrant named “Pluggie,” and his successor was “Freddie the Fire Truck.”

One young man who went to elementary school with Raines’ sons was on one of these tours. After the tour, the awed boy said he wanted to be a firefighter when he grew up. Years later, Raines received a letter from the now-grown man.

“He said he wanted to be a fireman — and he is, now,” Raines said. “He works down in North Carolina. What we did encouraged him to be a fireman.”

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Even after fighting fires longer than some of his co-workers have been alive, Raines has no immediate retirement plans.

“This is a great career, and I’m privileged to be in it,” he said. “I have no immediate plans to retire. I still like to come to work. People say that if you like your job, you’ll never work a day in your life. I haven’t worked many days.

“… The city has been really good to me. I’ve been blessed. I’ve been lucky enough to advance through the ranks to captain. That’s not guaranteed. Sometimes, you have attrition, and then, you have to be in the right place and at the right time. I have really good lieutenants I work with, and they really take an interest in the men. It really takes coordination.

“It’s a privilege to be trusted by the public.”

— E-mail: apridemore@register-herald.com