Monday, June 4, 2012

Arlington Fire Department Sets Off Explosives, Burns Junk Vehicles 200 Feet from Abingdon School



Hello,

We wondered what the loud explosions coming from the vicinity of the Arlington Trade Center are all about. One usually hears them weekdays between 10:30 and 11:00 AM. We venture to the Trades Center to recycle our old bills and bank statements once a month. So we asked the County employees who work at the Trades Center about the explosions. Also, we noticed a strong odor in Fairlington like burning garbage or tires on a number of occasions weekdays.

"Oh" they said, "That's the Fire Department doing its thing at the Fire Training Academy." So, we stopped at the Fire Training Academy on our way out of the Trades Center. (The Fire Training Academy is where voters who lived in Shirlington Precinct voted until a few years ago).

Surprise. Surprise. A parking lot full of burned out junk vehicles. Here's a photo. WHY are explosions being set off 200 feet from Abingdon Elementary School? WHY are junk vehicles being burned 200 feet from Abingdon Elementary School? WHY is this being done weekdays when children are attending Abingdon Elementary School?

Doesn't Fairlington resident, long-time School Board member, cancer survivor, and current County Board member Libby Garvey care about the health and safety of children in her own community? Appears not.

Cindy

74 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hard to believe Libby Garvey doesn't know about and approved this.

fairgrrl said...

Wondered where that terrible odor was coming from.

Anonymous said...

I thought that all open air burning is illegal in Arlington County. Burning junk cars? What are they trying to do, start a cancer cluster?

Anonymous said...

The Chief doesn't live in Arlington either. Almost none of Arlington's paid firefighters and paramedics live in Arlington. Why should they care?

Anonymous said...

Don't our children breathe enough polluted air already?

Anonymous said...

Cindy, something like 95% of the Fire Department's employees don't live in Arlington.

N. Fairlington Resident said...

OMG, every firefighter safety organization in the world tells firefighters to don breathing apparatus and stay as far away from burning vehicles as possible. Here's the Arlington County Fire Department exploding and burning vehicles near our elementary school and homes. Can you spell R E C K L E S S *** E N D A N G E R M E N T ? ? ?

Reitsfuhrer Zimmerman said...

"Citizens of the Reit: We must undertake every means available to prevent the Eastern Islamavik Tide from overwhelming us. Therefore, I your Reitsfuhrer, ask you to be tolerant of these minor inconveniences."

Mike said...

Hi Cindy, I wondered where the soot that often coats our windshields was coming from. I live on South 30th Road.

Anonymous said...

As a matter of fact, the Arlington County Fire Department IS starting a cancer cluster in Abingdon Elementary School.

Anonymous said...

How about that low life Editor of the Sun Gazette who lives in the Fairlington neighborhood? He's so connected with the Chamber of Commerce, Committee of 100, County Government, etc., etc., he has to be aware his own neighborhood is being massively polluted by junk-car burning in the Trades Center.

President Obama said...

Look, a wise old Bolshevist once said: "In order to make an omlette you have to break a few eggs."

That good advice is as relevant today as it was 100 years ago.

If children in Pakistan, Yemen, and Afghanistan are killed by American airstrikes against terrorist sympathizers, it's part of the cost of fighting terrorism. If a few American children die because of American anti-terrorist activities in the United States, it's something that's unfortunate, but also something we must accept.

We can't rid ourselves of international terrorism without sacrifices. So I'm asking all Americans to redouble our efforts in fighting a battle we must win.

Anonymous said...

Can we have the children who attend Abingdon Elementary School tested for carcinogens in their blood, as soon as possible?

Abingdon School Parent said...

Can we please knock off the Reitsfuhrer hyperbole, this is a pretty serious public health issue.

Even more serious, a cancer survivor on the County Board allowed it to occur.

Anonymous said...

The people who are doing this (blowing up and burning vehicles) don't live here. Nothing that non-residents do in Arlington surprises me. You attend the so-called 'work sessions' held at 3 PM weekdays in the County Board Room, or somewhere like where Economic Development has its offices, and it's obvious that the County Board rubber stamps whatever County employees who don't live in Arlington dream up.

Anonymous said...

Same County Board that banned outdoor smoking in public parks.

Anonymous said...

Seen the streets around Clarendon (Wilson Blvd, Clarendon Blvd) and around Crystal City? They want our kids to race bicycles over those streets this weekend.

fairgrrl said...

INCREDIBLE - Fire Department is burning junk vehicles this morning and smoke is covering Abingdon School while the children are outdoors playing !!!

Anonymous said...

It's after Noon and I still smell something burning. Smoke also covered North Fairlington around 10:45 AM.

Anonymous said...

Arlington Fire Department - what a bunch of a-holes. Didn't bother checking the wind speed and direction before they torched the junk cars.

fairgrrl said...

I e-mailed the County Board, wonder if I will receive a response?

Anonymous said...

"Thanks for your interest in this matter. Sorry your children were exposed to carcinogens. Unfortunately, in order to make an omlette you have to break a few eggs. Regards, Mary Hynes."

Anonymous said...

It's a Regime, remember? Like Mubarak in Egypt.

Anonymous said...

Yes they're creating a cancer cluster at Abingdon School. Same jerks who banned smoking in parks. Wonder if the firefighters would burn vehicles in their own backyards in the outer burbs?

Anonymous said...

Fairlington residents and Abingdon School students, faculty, and staff (among others) have been REPEATEDLY exposed to carcinogens from burning vehicles.

Anonymous said...

Audrey Clement for County Board.

Anonymous said...

Second the Motion. I will vote for Audrey. Voted for Libby in March. I won't vote for her again.

Anonymous said...

How about the other Arlington blogs? They trade real journalism for advertising revenue and the opportunity to meet and greet the Arlington Elite.

Anonymous said...

Libby Garvey doesn't give a rat's a** about her own community. She had to be repeatedly attacked about street paving by the Green Party before her own street was put on this year's repaving list.

Anonymous said...

What the Fire Department is doing violates the Clean Air Act.

Anonymous said...

I'm going to call the EPA.

Julie said...

I sent an e-mail to the County Board Office about this. Many Fairlington residents had their windows open because the weather is so pleasant. No response from anyone on the County Board.

Anonymous said...

No response from the County Board as of Noon today. Obviously Libby Garvey could care less.

Anonymous said...

E-mail Patricia Sullivan, Post reporter who covers Arlington and Alexandria, sullivanp at washpost dot com.

Anonymous said...

We are totally "governed" by non-residents, from the County Manager to the Fire Chief to the "firefighters" who set the junk vehicles on fire at the Trades Center. The County Board spends all its time making deals with developers when it isn't traveling around the world visiting sister cities.

Anonymous said...

I have less and less respect for anyone in county government, elected or appointed.

Anonymous said...

We should be asking why with the urbanization of the area between King Street and Four Mile Run Drive is a Fire Academy allowed to operate in the Trades Center?

Anonymous said...

Call in the Feds. Lock up the ACFD arsonists who are causing Abingdon School and North Fairlington to become cancer clusters.

Abingdon School Parent said...

I left repeated messages at the County Board Office for Libby Garvey regarding this outrage perpetrated against our children who attend Abingdon School and/or live in Fairlington. No response whatsoever.

Anonymous said...

The local for-profit media - Arl Now, Sun Gazette, Patch, know all about this but remain silent in return for ad revenue from the County Board's pet corporations and insider tips from the county's PR machine.

Anonymous said...

$ara$ota $cotty McCaffrey obtains his copy pre-written by County employees in return for keeping his editorial mouth shut and bombarding the sheeple with tons of drivel and trivia produced by the County's PR machine.

Anonymous said...

Where's Libby? Traveling to Ecuador, Wisconsin? Sister Cities? Has not had kids in the school system for about 25 years. Why should she care?

Anonymous said...

This has been going on DECADES. Because ACFD has been burning all kinds of junk at the Fire Academy for decades.

Anonymous said...

Apparently, the Fire Department, County Government, and the County Board are upset that parents and citizens complained.

Anonymous said...

No response from Libby Garvey about this. County Board Office is non-responsive as well. Same for County Manager.

Anonymous said...

I sent the County Manager an e-mail to request any training involving setting fires be moved out of Arlington; County is simply too urbanized and will become more so.

Anonymous said...

Cindy, County Gov't isn't going to admit anything.

Anonymous said...

Fire Chief James Schwartz is totally under Zimmerman's control. Another non-resident who's working here for a big pay check.

Anonymous said...

Shirlington has been urbanized and literally thousands of residents and visitors would be inhaling toxic smoke when vehicles are burned if smoke from burning vehicles drifted onto the library, supermarkets, apartments, etc.

County is spending $2.4 billion for infrastructure over the next decade. Time to contribute to a regional fire training academy. Tear down the fire training academy, clean up the site, and make it a park.

Anonymous said...

If you visit the ACFD Web site you will see they are always burning junk of one kind of another at the fire academy. Time to get OSHA and EPA over there.

Anonymous said...

Firefighters are pissed because this blog and Fairlington residents want to douse their probie roasts.

Anonymous said...

ACFD is getting ready to start a new recruit class, so time is now for ACFD to find someplace else to set their fires.

Anonymous said...

Arlington Fire Academy = Arlington's #1 Tear Down Opportunity.

Anonymous said...

Tear down the Fire Academy and redevelop it into a park. Send the probies elsewhere for training.

Fairlington Parent said...

LOL - They are all Pro Life Patriots, who live in the outer burbs, except when it comes to protecting the health of human children in Arlington.

Anonymous said...

Seems like all the recruits do is start fires at the fire training academy, watch them burn awhile, then extinguish them.

Susan said...

Call Libby at the County Board offices - 703-228-3130. On second thought, don't call Libby. She and her little group of Fairlington Democrat ward heelers will only start rumors about you, as they do with anyone who doesn't go along with the program.

Anonymous said...

Why are they starting a new class of firefighter recruits? Because veteran firefighters are becoming stressed because of lack of equipment, especially EMS (ambulance) units, and are looking for employment elsewhere. And retiring as soon as they can.

KL said...

Want the fire academy moved? June 26th is the public hearing for the County's $2.4 billion Capital Improvement Program.

Tomorrow is the Democratic Primary. We can starting retiring the Regime's bad actors by retiring the Regime's worst actor, Jim Moran.

Anonymous said...

The Fire / EMS Department is stressed because there are more than 400 homeless persons on Arlington's streets, County Government is putting more traffic and more and bigger special events in Arlington's streets, County Government is approving constructing more large buildings, and thousands of adults with serious pre-existing medical conditions have no resources when they feel ill except to call 911.

Anonymous said...

Read the news? Congressman Moran voted in Shirlington today, meaning he again lives in Shirlington

Anonymous said...

With a huge social services bureaucracy and thousands of volunteers why are there also so many 911 calls by people who are experiencing medical conditions that aren't life threatening?

Anonymous said...

"Send a couple of EMS units, my family is feeling dizzy because of the toxic smoke getting through the windows of my 10th floor Shirlington condo."

Anonymous said...

How about...sending Moran a letter asking him to get a federal grant to move the Arlington Fire Training Academy? Work with Connally and Wolf to build a regional fire training academy.

Anonymous said...

Forget it, Jim Moran only cares about the wants of his extended family, 20 pet special interests, and 50 long-time friends.

L O L said...

Chief Schwartz, keep burning junk cars at the trades center. Sooner or later some toxic smoke will envelop the condo where Jim Moran lives while he's home.

Anonymous said...

Does Jim Moran live in the same Shirlington condo as before LuAnn? Does he live rent free?

Fisherman61 said...

Ok all you idiots should keep your traps shut and not make ignorant comments the fire department is doing scenarios invoving terroist setting off simulated car bombs.Arlington being so close to dc is a hotspot for this type of activity to happen. You should be happy your fire and ems department has the chance to train like this. In the event something ever happens in arlington you will be the first people wanting the fire department to help you so be thankful your fire department has the experience to handle these incidents and in no way is the fire department going to put the surrounding community at any risk during its training. This type of training only benefits you your community and the citizens of Arlington county so please get your facts straight before you put down the people who will be helping you and befote you decide to open your mouths and make ignorant comments.

Fairlington Parent said...

I'm a Fairlington parent and the next time smoke from burning vehicles is seen around my kid's school I will seek a warrant for the arrest of the non-resident knuckleheads who torched the vehicles for child endangerment. Why don't the ACFD probie knuckleheads who like starting fires ask the county to contribute to a regional fire academy? Build it out where the ACFD firefighters and paramedics who set junk cars on fire live....Spotsylvania County. Yet another group of non-residents that gets to use 9-11-01 as an excuse to do its thing at my community's expense.

Anonymous said...

Another non-resident a-hole who lives 40 miles out and of course anything he and his fire happy buds do here in Arlington is OK because we are fighting a never ending war on terror.

Anonymous said...

County Board will be holding a public hearing Tuesday, June 26th regarding its $2.4 billion capital improvement program. Yes, time for Arlington to contribute to a regional fire academy and stop the burning of all kinds of junk at the Trades Center.

Fisherman61 said...

Has nothing to do with our never ending war on terror it has to do with people like you making stuid comments before you get your facts in order and making assumptions that the fire department is endangering people in the community and doing something wrong someone above them had to approve of it so complain at them first.

Adult said...

Dumbass, you and your probie knuckleheads take you junk car barbecue to you own neighborhoods in Spotsylvania. Leave our children out of you 9-11 re-enactments.

Fairlington Parent said...

No F-ing fooling. Next time we see or smell smoke from your next 9-11 re-enactor junk vehicle barbecue inside Fairlington we will obtain a warrant for ACFD Chief Schwartz's arrest for Child Endangerment. Then we will go to the media. Washington Post is already aware of what you PW-Spotsylvania a-hole fire bug 9-11 re-enactors are doing.