The titles for Ladder 49 are an attempt to show the class and prestige of the Baltimore Fire Department. Light and shadow drift across the face of the chrome-like typography, representing the smoke and impending danger of what it means to be a fireman. Lastly, in the film’s opening scene, the characters of the main title, Ladder 49, are engulfed in the flames of a burning building, foreshadowing what is to come of the movie’s main character.