FIREFIGHTERS BATTLE HOUSE FIRE

IN BELOW ZERO TEMPERATURES

LaGrange – With temperatures in the single digits and the wind chill below zero Firefighters from LaGrange Township and Wellington Fire District battled a house fire in Pheasant Run Saturday night.

Chief James Rader of LaGrange Township Fire & Rescue said that although the home was occupied at the time the fire broke out, nobody was injured. “I arrived first in my personal vehicle at which time I found heavy smoke coming from the roof and flames coming from a back bedroom of the house.” When other Firefighters arrived Chief Rader said that they made entry into the home to attack the fire. “The fire got into the attic, it’s a short attic with a lot of insulation so we had to tear ceilings down to get to the fire. We were able to stop it in the middle of the house and then we pushed it back to get it out.”

The entire home received heavy smoke damage and the back portion of the home received heavy fire damage.

When the fire broke out there were two adults and five children in the home, it was one of the kids who happened to be walking down a hallway and spotted the fire. “When he saw the fire he alerted everyone else in the home and they all immediately got out of the house and went to a neighbors to call 9-1-1. The family leaving the home immediately was absolutely the proper thing to do in this case.”

The artic blast that entered Lorain County Friday night had the temperature at 9 degrees and the wind blowing at 15 and gusting up to 24 MPH, the wind chill was at 7 below zero. The National Weather Service in Cleveland is forecasting that the wind chill could get to 20 below zero this weekend. Chief Rader said that 7 below was “cold enough” and that it was having some effects on the Firefighters. “Some of the guys SCBA’s (self contained breathing apparatus) were having trouble with the regulators freezing with the water getting on them. Their gloves are getting wet and freezing on them and of course we had to salt down areas around the trucks where the water was spilling to keep the area safe for the Firefighters walking through those areas.”

If you are looking for something good out of this story, other then the fact that nobody was injured – some Good Samaritans came to the Firefighters rescue in the cold. A man and his two sons who live one street over saw how hard the Firefighters were working and the fact that they were performing their duties in such frigid conditions – they got to work and made hot coffee. Between the three of them they shuttled cups of coffee to the chilled Firefighters. Not sure where they got all the cups, but a tip of the TMC NEWS hat to that family. Instead of staying in their warm home and watching through their windows they saw something that they could do to help, and they did it. KUDOS!

Wellington Fire District assisted in battling the blaze while Carlisle Township assisted by staffing LaGrange’s station.


To see more photos from the fire scene: CLICK HERE