BURN: One Year on the Frontlines of the Battle to Save Detroit is a 2012 American documentary film, produced and directed by Tom Putnam and Brenna Sanchez. It focuses on Engine Company 50 of the Detroit Fire Department, and the city of Detroit as it faces an economic collapse and rising arson and fire rates. The film was executive produced by Denis Leary and Jim Serpico through their production company, Apostle, as well as Steve Tihanyi and Morgan Neville.
The film follows the firefighters of Engine Company 50 of the Detroit Fire Department over the course of a year as they struggle with the highest arson rate in the country, [1] and a lack of funding from the City of Detroit as it approaches bankruptcy. It highlights 3 specific individuals involved with the Detroit Fire Department.
Dave Parnell is a 33-year veteran firefighter, living in the same neighborhood as Engine 50. The film shows Parnell's last year on the job, approaching retirement as he turns 60 years old, and coming to terms with the death of his ailing, longtime wife, Gloria. He acts as the elder philosopher of the firehouse, spouting wisdom on life, firefighting, love, and the current state of Detroit.
Brendan "Doogie" Milewski, is a straight-shooting, adventurous, 11-year firefighter who becomes paralyzed after a wall crashes down on him while fighting a fire. Newly married, Doogie must adjust to life outside of the fire department, and life as a paraplegic.
After spending 30 years with the Los Angeles Fire Department, Detroit-native Don Austin is hired as Detroit Fire Department's new commissioner facing the task of rehabilitating and revitalizing the organization. He must lead the Department despite Detroit's financial crisis and the growing rate of arson in the city's abandoned buildings. [2]
Putnam and Sanchez began work on the film after learning about the November 2008 death of Walter Harris, a Detroit firefighter who was killed while fighting a blaze in a vacated home. Wondering why firefighters would risk their lives to save an abandoned building in a city that has 80,000 abandoned structures, Putnam and Sanchez began investigating the state of the Detroit Fire Department. [3] They began shooting with Engine 50 in August 2009. [4]
Putnam and Sanchez started asking for corporate donors and taking tax-deductible online donations. General Motors made a donation in December 2010 to start filming while fundraising continued. Over the next 13 months, until January 2012, the film crew was embedded with the firefighters. With the exception of two of its Directors of Photography, BURN employed exclusively local crew. [3]
Denis Leary and Jim Serpico ("Rescue Me") joined as BURN's executive producers in 2011. [4]
The film premiered at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival where it won the Audience Award. [5]
Despite an overwhelmingly positive response at the 2012 Tribeca Film Festival, the film was unable to secure a buyer for distribution. Putnam and Sanchez decided to self-distribute and release BURN by renting out movie theaters in 35 cities across the United States and embarking on a multi-city tour. These screenings were promoted as industry screenings, targeted at local firefighting companies. [3] [6]
Distributor Area 23a began booking the film into AMC Theatres, though Putnam and Sanchez decided to continue self-distribution after seeing a large difference in profits between the AMC screenings and their own screenings. [3]
In Spring 2013, BURN played in 170 cities across the United States in four-walled screenings. [3] [6]
On Rotten Tomatoes, a review aggregator, the film has a score of 100% based on 16 reviews with an average rating of 8 out of 10. [7] The Washington Post called it "An emotional character study of a group of heroic, yet very human, individuals." [8]
BURN was released on DVD and Blu-ray Disc on June 18, 2013. [9]
9/11 is a 2002 documentary film about the September 11 attacks in New York City, in which two planes were flown into the buildings of the World Trade Center, resulting in their destruction and the deaths of nearly 3,000 people. The film is from the point of view of the New York City Fire Department. The film was directed by brothers Jules and Gédéon Naudet and FDNY firefighter James Hanlon and produced by Susan Zirinsky of CBS News.
The New York City Fire Department, officially the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) is the full-service fire department of New York City, serving all five boroughs. The FDNY is responsible for fire suppression and fire prevention, and is a major provider of EMS services in New York City. Beyond fire suppression and EMS, the FDNY is responsible for a broad range of services, including technical rescue, CBRN defense, and structural collapse response and analysis. The FDNY is equipped with a wide variety of general-purpose and specialized Vehicles,Tools and Equipment to serve its varied missions.
Backdraft is a 1991 American action thriller film directed by Ron Howard and written by Gregory Widen. The film stars Kurt Russell, William Baldwin, Scott Glenn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Rebecca De Mornay, Donald Sutherland, Robert De Niro, Jason Gedrick, and J. T. Walsh, and follows Chicago firefighters on the trail of a serial arsonist.
Rescue Me is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on FX from July 21, 2004, to September 7, 2011. The series focuses on the professional and personal lives of a group of New York City firefighters.
The New York City Fire Museum is a museum dedicated to the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) in the Hudson Square neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. It is housed in the former quarters of the FDNY's Engine Company No. 30, a renovated 1904 fire house at 278 Spring Street between Varick and Hudson Streets.
The Los Angeles County Fire Department (LACoFD) provides firefighting and emergency medical services for the unincorporated parts of Los Angeles County, California, as well as 59 cities through contracting, including the city of La Habra which is located in Orange County and is the first city outside of Los Angeles County to contract with LACoFD.
John Leonard Orr is an American convicted serial arsonist, mass murderer, and former firefighter. A fire captain and arson investigator in Glendale, California, Orr was convicted of serial arson and four counts of murder; he is believed to have set nearly 2,000 fires in a 30-year arson spree, most of them between 1984 and 1991, making him the most prolific serial arsonist in American history.
The San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) provides firefighting, hazardous materials response services, technical rescue services and emergency medical response services to the City and County of San Francisco, California.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to firefighting:
A thermal imaging camera is a type of the thermographic camera used in firefighting. By rendering infrared radiation as visible light, such cameras allow firefighters to see areas of heat through smoke, darkness, or heat-permeable barriers. Thermal imaging cameras are typically handheld, but may be helmet-mounted. They are constructed using heat- and water-resistant housings, and ruggedized to withstand the hazards of fireground operations.
Firehouse Dog is a 2007 American family film produced by Regency Enterprises and distributed by 20th Century Fox. Directed by Todd Holland, it stars Josh Hutcherson, Bruce Greenwood, Dash Mihok, Steven Culp and Bill Nunn. It was released April 4, 2007, in the U.S.
The Boston Fire Department provides fire services and first responder emergency medical services to the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It also responds to such incidents as motor vehicle accidents, hazardous material spills, utility mishaps, floods, explosions, and construction accidents among others.
The Detroit Fire Department (DFD) provides fire protection and emergency medical services to the U.S. city of Detroit, Michigan.
The Kansas City Fire Department provides fire protection and emergency medical service for Kansas City, Missouri, and under contract to Village of the Oaks, Village of Oakwood Park, and Village of Oakwood. It provides fire protection only under contract to City of Lake Waukomis, City of Platte Woods, City of Weatherby Lake, and Village of Ferrelview. In addition, it provides EMS support under contract for the City of Riverside. It operates 35 fire stations, one dedicated EMS operations facility housing dynamically deployed ambulances, organized into seven battalions and cover 318 square miles (820 km2).
Firefighting is the act of extinguishing destructive fires. A firefighter fights these fires with the intent to prevent destruction of life, property and the environment. Firefighting is a highly technical profession, which requires years of training and education in order to become proficient. A fire can rapidly spread and endanger many lives; however, with modern firefighting techniques, catastrophe can usually be avoided. To help prevent fires from starting, a firefighter's duties include public education and conducting fire inspections. Because firefighters are often the first responders to victims in critical conditions, firefighters often also provide basic life support as emergency medical technicians or advanced life support as licensed paramedics. Firefighters make up one of the major emergency services, along with the emergency medical service, the police, and many others.
Firefighting in the United States dates back to the earliest European colonies in the Americas. Early firefighters were simply community members who would respond to neighborhood fires with buckets. The first dedicated volunteer fire brigade was established in 1736 in Philadelphia. These volunteer companies were often paid by insurance companies in return for protecting their clients.
Firehouse, Hook & Ladder Company 8 is a New York City Fire Department (FDNY) fire station, located at 14 North Moore Street at its intersection with Varick Street in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Its exterior has become famous for its appearance in the supernatural comedy franchise Ghostbusters.
Portland Fire and Rescue, also known as the Portland Fire Bureau, and sometimes informally the Portland Fire Department, is the principle fire suppression, prevention, and rescue agency of the City of Portland, Oregon, United States. The department is the largest fire protection and emergency medical services provider in the state of Oregon, responsible for an area of 151 square miles (390 km2), with a population of over 632,309. Oversight of Portland's bureaus shifts among the five City Commissioners. As of 2023, Mayor Ted Wheeler has assigned the Fire Bureau to Commissioner Rene Gonzalez.
The Michigan Firehouse Museum and Education Center is a fire museum dedicated to the history of firefighting in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located at 110 West Cross Street in Ypsilanti, Michigan.