Baltimore City firefighters battled flames early Monday at Falkenhan’s Hardware, a staple in Hampden that sits on the edge of the Miracle on 34th Street holiday lights display.
Firefighters responded to the 700 block of West 34th Street around 6:30 a.m. Crews worked to put out the two-alarm fire, which engulfed the unoccupied two-story building, said John Marsh, a spokesperson for the Baltimore City Fire Department.
Smoke was still coming out of the building an hour after crews arrived, and a small crowd gathered to look at the scorched building. A hubcap Christmas tree from local artist Jim Pollock sat in front of the store amid the fire.
Crews got the fire under control, and no injuries were reported, Marsh said. Fire officials said late Monday that the blaze was caused by an electrical accident.
Michele Maszon, who has lived in the neighborhood for 50 years, cried as she watched firefighters cut through smoldering parts of the building. The hardware store was where people went to “pick up those stupid little things you just can’t find,” she said.
“I am broken,” she said to a firefighter on the scene.
Maszon is confident the neighborhood will rebuild. She volunteers at the local VFW in Hampden and has organized fundraisers following recent fires, some of which were supported by Falkenhan’s.
“I now have to figure out how to have one for her,” she said of Falkenhan’s owner.
The hardware store sits next to the Miracle on 34th Street holiday display, a popular tradition in which homeowners deck out the block with lights that shine from the Saturday after Thanksgiving until New Year’s Day. Councilwoman Odette Ramos, who represents Hampden and Remington, said the holiday lights will still be on Monday evening.
Ramos said Falkenhan’s was a neighborhood institution run by the same family for generations. The emotional impact of these fires is significant, she added.
“I think the community is sick of all these fires,” she said.
Nathan Grundhauser lives six doors down from Falkenhan’s on Chestnut Avenue. The 41-year-old said he ran from door to door Monday morning to wake neighbors.
He said he shopped at Falkenhan’s once a week and wondered if he still had a tab there. Grundhauser described the recent string of fires in and around Hampden as “exhausting, mentally.”
“Do I move?” he asked. Grundhauser said his 4-year-old daughter is terrified of fires now. “So am I,” he added.
Recent fires in Baltimore
Just over a block away from the hardware store, The Castle, a historic Hampden building and Baltimore landmark, caught fire in early November, requiring a response of more than 80 firefighters and emergency personnel. The Victorian-style building housed several small businesses, including a bridal studio. That fire, too, was caused by an electrical accident, fire officials said late Monday.
Firefighters also battled a four-alarm fire in nearby Remington last month that displaced over 20 people.
The president of the city fire officers’ union said Monday that union leadership has tried to be more active on social media and spread the word about what home and business owners can do to reduce the risk of fires.
“We think that we do a good job of getting that message of fire safety out there to the public, but it’s only as effective as how it’s received by everybody,” said Joshua Fannon, a battalion chief with the fire department and the president of IAFF Local 964 Baltimore Fire Officers. “It’s ultimately a good thing that civilians are paying closer attention to fires happening because that’s going to keep it at the forefront of their mind, and hopefully that means they are a little bit keener on fire safety in their homes.”
Fannon said that, despite a perception that fires are on the rise, every month this year since July has had fewer than usual compared to the five-year average, according to data compiled by the union. One data point that stuck out to the union president was an uptick in four-alarm or greater fires.
Halfway through the current fiscal year, which began July 1, there have been three fires that were four-alarm or greater. For comparison, fiscal year 2025 had four such fires, while 2024 and 2023 had none and 2022 had three.
“If this pattern continues, it will be a definite uptick in four-plus-alarm fires, but as far as total fires, it looks like it’s going to be about the same as usual,” Fannon said.
He attributed the uptick to natural ebb and flow patterns in a city such as Baltimore, which has many old buildings with older electrical wiring.
Comments
Welcome to The Banner's subscriber-only commenting community. Please review our community guidelines.