‘Nothing can or will erase their memory’: Palatine remembers three fallen firefighters
Palatine continued its tradition of honoring three volunteer firefighters who gave their lives battling a deadly blaze at the downtown Ben Franklin store in 1973 at a ceremony Monday.
Friends, family, city officials and those who fought the fire shared a solemn remembrance at the Palatine Firefighters Memorial at Brockway and Slade streets on the fire’s anniversary.
Warren “Auggie” Ahlgrim, 32, John Wilson, 40, and Richard Freeman, 25, perished fighting the fire in the basement of the store at 36 N. Brockway St.
“Nothing can or will erase their memory of those who have left us way too soon,” Palatine paramedic/firefighter Eric Jordan said at the ceremony as wreathes were laid and bells tolled.
In the early morning hours of Feb. 23, firefighters from the Colfax Street station arrived and confirmed smoke from the basement area.
The three firefighters were ordered to advance a hose line to attack the fire into the basement. According to reports from the time, the fire had spread through the walls and ceiling, quickly becoming uncontrollable. The trio were trapped by falling debris.
It took nearly four hours to bring the blaze under control with the help of several neighboring fire departments, including Arlington Heights and Roling Meadows.
David Freeman, Richard's brother, also attended the remembrance event, which the village stages regularly.
“It's a testimonial to the dedication of firefighters,” Freeman said. “You go against all odds every time you fight a fire.”
Jim-“E” Clarke, who helped fight the fire while he was off-duty with the Hoffman Estates department, came to the ceremony with a flashlight he had purchased from Richard Freeman at nearby Zimmer Hardware just weeks before the blaze.
“I followed the hose line in the front door and I tried to get to the basement,” he recalled. “The hose was underneath the crushed cabinets where the ceiling came down, and it prevented me from getting any further.”
John Tobin's father, David Tobin, a second lieutenant with the Palatine department, also fought the Ben Franklin fire. John Tobin, who later became an Elgin firefighter, photographed the fire and eventually wrote a book about it.
“As the years go by, it's surreal, like it never happened. And then it all comes flooding back,” he said.
Also attending was Brad Helms, the grandson of Orville Helms, who was fire chief at the time of the fire. Brad Helms is now a Palatine councilman.
He said the anniversary was always difficult for his grandfather.
“This community has been our home for five generations,” he said. “The fact that my grandfather was involved trying to protect the people of Palatine is a big reason why I give back.”