* Fire Safety on the Slopes

A fire destroyed three Slopes’ homes on Memorial Day weekend 1997. Alarmed by the inability of a standard city fire truck to negotiate the neighborhood’s narrow streets and sharp turns, a group of residents joined forces to create the South Side Slopes Neighborhood Association. Organized around the issue of fire safety, they gathered data and made the case for a smaller fire truck with a tighter turning base. The city adopted the new design, and now a few smaller, more-able fire trucks serve hillside neighborhoods throughout Pittsburgh.