1826 | The town site for London is surveyed. |
February 13, 1839 | Four businesses burned in a Dundas Street fire. |
February 10, 1840 | London is incorporated as a town. |
March 7, 1842 | By-laws for London’s Fire Brigade are established. |
October 8, 1844 | Fire ravages 30 buildings along Dundas Street. |
April 13, 1845 | Great Fire of London destroys more than 150 buildings. |
January 1, 1855 | London is granted its charter as a city. |
December 17, 1855 | Firefighter John Eskdale is killed in a house fire on Talbot Street. |
February 16, 1856 | Five men are killed in an explosion at Anderson foundry. |
April 23, 1867 | The city buys its first steam engine for the fire brigade. |
April 1, 1873 | The professional fire department begins service under Fire Chief Thomas Wastie. |
November 2, 1874 | Firefighter William Howlett dies after becoming ill while fighting a fire. |
February 13, 1879 | Fire hydrants are used for first time in a fire at the Carling brewery. |
April 19, 1880 | John Roe is appointed Fire Chief May 24, 1881 |
February 18, 1884 | Three men are killed in an explosion and fire at Hobbs Hardware. |
January 3, 1898 | The second floor of city hall collapses during municipal election night, killing 23 people and injuring 150 others. |
January 6, 1904 | Fire Chief Roe is killed when a wall collapses at the Sterling Brothers fire on York Street. |
March 28, 1904 | Lawrence Clark becomes Fire Chief. |
July 16, 1907 | Reids Crystal Hall on Dundas Street collapses and 7 people are killed. |
May 31, 1908 | Firefighter William Seccombe dies in a fire at City Hotel. |
August 18, 1908 | Fire Chief Clark, Firefighter Henry Wein and Sergeant John Cockburn killed in a blaze at Westman hardware on Dundas Street. |
October 5, 1908 | John Aitken is appointed fire chief. |
November 3, 1911 | Fire damages Kingsmills and seven other Dundas Street businesses. |
June 18, 1916 | Fire Captain John Case killed in a collision between a fire truck and a freight train at a Talbot Street crossing |
November 22, 1918 | The London Professional Fire Fighters Association is formed. |
January 22, 1927 | One person is killed in a fire at Peoples Savings and Loan building. |
April 21, 1927 | Charles Jenner is hired as Fire Chief. |
December 4, 1928 | Alderman Dickson Glass asks for Chief Jenner‘s resignation. One week later the chief resigns. |
January 7, 1929 | Charles Scott is appointed Fire Chief. |
January 7, 1932 | Fire damages Kingsmills and Dundas Street businesses. |
March 3, 1934 | District Chief Stanley Scruby and Lieutenant Arthur Hartop are killed in a furious blaze at Hunts Mill. |
March 26, 1937 | The Thames River floods. |
October 1, 1939 | Robert McRonald is appointed Fire Chief. |
March 3, 1947 | District Chief Alex Kerrigan dies at a Richmond Street fire. |
July 29, 1957 | A New central fire hall is officially opened at Waterloo and York streets. |
November 1, 1958 | Milton Mathers appointed as Fire Chief. |
November 14, 1960 | Captain David Moffitt suffers a fatal heart attack while fighting a major fire on Richmond Street. |
October 1, 1961 | Four children are killed in a house fire on William Street. |
November 25, 1962 | Five children die in a house fire on Lyman Street. |
August 1, 1970 | Ray Morley appointed as Fire Chief. |
January 26, 1971 | A winter blizzard closes London and a state of emergency is declared. |
January 8, 1973 | Three people are killed in a fire on Elgin Street. |
August 7, 1973 | Natural gas explosions in Oxford Park burn 50 homes. |
October 5, 1974 | 911 emergency service begins in London. |
November 11, 1976 | Fire destroys Central Chev on Fullarton Street. |
January 26, 1978 | London is paralyzed by a major winter storm. |
April 3, 1978 | Eagle Court home is destroyed by an explosion. |
April 30, 1979 | Firefighter Richard Roman is killed when a lire engine collides with an ambulance. |
February 1, 1983 | Robert Barr appointed Fire Chief. |
15, 1983 | Two people are killed in a fire on Tumbleweed Crescent. |
January 1981 | Fire destroys the downtown YM-YWCA. |
Sept 2, 1984 | A tornado strikes south London damaging hundreds of homes. |
January 10, 1985 | Four boys die in a house fire on Clarence Street. |
July 28, 1989 | Six people are killed in a house fire on Margaret Street. |
March 24, 1990 | Fire in a Wharnclifte Road apartment kills two teenagers. |
November 14, 1991 | Four fire fighters are injured after Engine 9 goes off the Vauxhall bridge. |
November 25, 1991 | Jim Fitzgerald appointed Fire Chief. |
November 1, 1993 | Gary Weese appointed Fire Chief. |
Apr 18, 1994 | Arson fire forces evacuation and closure of Saunders Secondary school. |
May 17, 1995 | An industrial accident kills two workers at the London Hydro compound on Bathurst Street. |
April 22, 1996 | The new central fire hall on Horton Street is opened. |
February 1, 1999 | David Hodgins is promoted to Fire Chief. |
April 23, 1999 | Fire destroys the Cornell Farm Market. |
October 5, 2000 | Copp’s Buildall warehouse on Adelaide Street is destroyed by fire. |
January 9, 2001 | London fire personnel provide staffing for the St. Thomas Fire Department during the funeral for St. Thomas Fire Captain Dennis Redman. |
September 11, 2001 | Terrorist attacks hit New York, sparking the establishment of the Fallen Heroes Fund in London. |
Significant DatesFire Buff2023-10-24T11:33:46-04:00