CDA Firefighters Remember Richard “Dick” Gaines

The firefighters of the Coeur d’Alene Fire Department took time today to honor and remember Richard “Dick” Gaines who died while responding to a fire in the Thompson building on the 200 block of Sherman Avenue on July 15, 1951.

The headline in the CDA Press read “CDA fireman perishes in blaze...”

"On the 71st anniversary of this tragic event, which is the only known Line of Duty Death within the CDA Fire Department, our firefighters wanted to ensure that they took time to honor Firefighter Gaines’ sacrifice," said a news release from the Coeur d'Alene Fire Department. "This time also served as an opportunity to train and learn from the events that lead to the tragedy."

The building where the fire occurred is still in use today. The fire was reported to the fire department around 3:15 a.m. that fateful morning and was full of thick smoke. As Dick entered the structure and began to head toward the basement he fell through the back stairs, eight feet to the basement below. Rescue efforts were unsuccessful and his body was located nearly three hours later.

Dick Gaines, 27, was a graduate of CDA High School and served in the Pacific during WWII before joining the CDA Fire Department in June of 1947.

"We would like to thank the current owners of the building for allowing our firefighters an opportunity to visit this site to honor our fallen comrade while also training current CDA firefighters," said the release. "Our crews were able to see the building construction and discuss tactics for attacking fires in basements which, to this day, continues to be one of the most dangerous and risky fires to extinguish."

Scars from the tragic fire are still evident in the building’s basement. The heavy timber building materials used at the time allowed the building to be rebuilt and still be a part of our history today. With today’s lightweight construction materials this is usually not the case.

"Please join us, and Firefighter Gaines’ remaining family, in honoring the sacrifice of Richard 'Dick' Gaines, Coeur d’Alene Firefighter (June 1947-July 15, 1951 EOW)," said the news release.