WFD Responds To Multiple Calls For Service On Monday
According to a press release from the department, the Williams County Dispatch Center sent the department to the area of Energy Street and Depot Lane for the first fire at 1:46 PM in response to a report of a grass fire actively spreading. Not harming any buildings, initial estimates placed the size at almost that of a football field.
The report triggered a first-alert wildfire assignment comprising the initial reaction of two brush trucks, a water tender, an ambulance, paid-on-call staff members, and command personnel.
Additionally sent for traffic management and site security were the City of Williston Police Department. Sent to offer scene support was Williams County/Williston Emergency Management.
Arriving first at 1:54 PM was Brush 2, from Fire Station #2. The crews noted an active fire right away and calculated it to be about 1/2 acre. Other fire units were returned to service before arriving on the scene; the crew from Brush 2 found that their unit could suppress the fire without more resources. At 2:05 PM the fire was totally suppressed.
The WFD credits the fast actions of the responding workers and the timely reporting of the occurrence by a passerby for the lowest possible fire loss.
Units answering the scene were Brush 2, Brush 1, Tender 1, Medic 2B, and command staff. All but Brush 2, Medic 2B, and command staff were canceled at 1:57 PM. Six firefighters in all were on the scene. At 4:06 PM, all WFD staff members were off the site. The incident claimed no recorded injuries.
The WFD Fire Prevention Division investigated the cause and source of the fire after receiving reports of suspicious activity at the scene. The fire started in a remote field devoid of any shared igniting source.
During the inquiry, they discovered remnants of fireworks in the vicinity.
The WFD Fire Prevention Division Deputy Fire Marshal is aggressively looking into this occurrence and requests that anyone with information get in touch with their office at 701-572-3400, ext 2325.
Less than an hour later, WFD responded once more, this time for a detached garage that had caught fire.
The Williams County Dispatch Center sent the Williston Fire Department, at 2:27 PM, to the 1800 block of 14th Avenue West to investigate a detached residential garage unit displaying active smoke and flames. The report triggered a first alert structural assignment comprising the initial reaction of two engines, a ladder truck, an ambulance, paid-on-call staff members, and command staff. Additionally sent for traffic management and site security were the City of Williston Police Department.
Arriving at 2:32 PM first from Fire Station #1 was Engine 1. The crew saw right away an active fire on an exterior wall of a garage unit spreading into the roof. Engine 1's crew checked no inhabitants were in the structure and started fire attack protocols right away. The fire had filtered into the attic. At 2:43 PM, the fire was declared out. Fire damage restricted to an outside wall and small areas of the attic space.
Units answering the site were Engine 1, Engine 3, Truck 2, Medic 1, and command personnel. Every WFD staff member was off the scene by 3:28 PM. The incident claimed no recorded injuries.
The fire was found to have started accidentally from an improvised cigarette disposal unit kept too near to the building. The WFD Fire Prevention Division wants to remind everyone that smoking should never be done indoors, as it is one of the main causes of home fires.
Cigarettes should be disposed of in a fire-safe disposal container and maintained at least three feet away from buildings or other combustible items, including patios, decks, or vegetation, when smoking outside.
More From KEYZ AM 660
