Firefighters are ready at a moment's notice to battle a blaze, a car crash or other emergencies. You're glad they are there for you and your family. But when your local fire station is the structure on fire, it becomes surreal for the firefighters. And that's what occurred last Sunday for the St. Anne Protection District. Shortly before 1 a.m., St. Anne Police Officer Russ Hoekstra was on patrol and smelled smoke. When he arrived on scene, flames were shooting from the department's side building roof, St. Anne Fire Chief Tim Douglas said. "There's no doubt about it, Russ got there at the right time or we would have lost the main building," Douglas said. Training turned into action as the district's three engines, tender and brush truck were all removed from the station's main building. Hoekstra alerted the Riverside Ambulance crew stationed in the main building. They were able to get their ambulance out. Damage was estimated between $750,000 and $1 million, Douglas said. The building is a total loss.  

Police, firefighters, and paramedics from Schaumburg responded about 1:14 p.m. Monday, July 19, 2021 to a report of a crash with injuries and entrapment at Woodfield Road and the West Frontage Road of Route 53 in Schaumburg. Ambulance 52's crew on arrival reported two vehicles with heavy damage, and requested an entrapment response. Both vehicles came to rest on West Frontage Road south of Woodfield Road. There was one crash victim in each vehicle. A black Ford Mustang was found with severe damage to the driver's side door, and a black Jeep Grand Cherokee was found with severe front-end damage. The driver of the Mustang was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver of the Jeep Grand Cherokee was described as "critical." The critical patient was transported to a local hospital with a police escort.  

A battery fire was burning late Monday near the LaSalle Generating Station in Marseilles, Illinois. The Marseilles Fire Department was on the scene for the battery fire just west of the generating station. The fire was contained by just before 4 p.m., but the LaSalle County Sheriff's office said the scene would remain active for a while. The sheriff's office emphasized that this is a different kind of battery fire than the one that broke out late last month in Morris. In that incident, a building containing 100 tons of lithium-ion batteries caught fire and prompted an evacuation order that went on for days.  

Crystal Lake firefighters believe a blaze that started in a lawnmower may be to blame for a house fire in town Saturday morning, fire officials said. The blaze, which broke out at about 11:15 a.m., destroyed the home in the 6500 block of Scott Lane. Firefighters first at the scene of the blaze found a heavy fire coming from an attached garage. The blaze then moved up into the attack, according to a news release from the Crystal Lake Fire Protection District. Everyone inside the home, including a dog and five residents, were able to safely get out, fire officials said. No one was injured. The home, which is valued at $375,000, was deemed a total loss. An initial investigation revealed the fire may have started in a lawn tractor that had just been used prior to the blaze breaking out.  

Multiple fire departments responded to a house fire on Poplar Lane in Citronelle Monday. When Citronelle Fire and Rescue arrived at the home, they saw heavy smoke and fire coming from the roof. No one was inside the home at the time, and no injuries were reported. Georgetown-Fellowship V.F.D., Oak Grove Volunteer Fire-Rescue, and Calcedeaver Volunteer Fire/Rescue Department were requested as mutual aid. "Please join us in keeping this family in your thoughts and prayers as they have lost almost everything to this fire," Citronelle Fire and Rescue posted on Facebook. "We would like to thank everyone on scene for their assistance, which also includes, Mobile County Dispatch, Mobile County EMS, Citronelle Police Department, as well as the bystanders who provided us with cold waters."  

Hall County Fire Chief Chris Armstrong agreed that when he was a young boy many of his playmates wanted to be firefighters when they grew up, but things often change in the years between youthful dreams and adulthood realities. But for those in whom that childhood ambition still simmers, Armstrong says his department might have just what they are looking for: a career opportunity as a firefighter. At Monday's Hall County Commission work session Armstrong presented commissioners with his department's newest recruiting tool: a three-minute video featuring members of Hall County Fire Services and what they have to say about their work as a first responder. "Every successful organization really starts with good recruiting," Armstrong told commissioners.  

Seven members of the Vestal Fire Department have been answering the call of duty for a combined total of more than 400 years. "It's our job," said Chris Lupold, 71, a 53-year volunteer for the department. "We just keep doing it." Lupold has battled countless blazes during his long firefighting career. Fellow firefighter Carle Truman is the longest-serving member, with 64 years of service. Other veteran Vestal firefighters include Ronald Linfoot, with 60 years of service; Ed Zimmer, 59 years; Gene Wagner, 58 years; Paul Gregson, 57 years; and Robert "Bob" Nasiatka, with 55 years. "They love to stick around to help their community," said Vestal Fire Chief John Paffie. "They stick around to be mentors to the people that are underneath them, people like me. I still look up to them. I still ask them questions. I still learn from them."  

VIDEO: Normally when you hear about firefighters and car wrecks, it's the firefighter who is responding to the incident, not getting into them. While Washington County firefighter Chandler Fishack has completed numerous extrications, he also has a knack for taking cars apart to turn them into demolition derby cars. Fishack will be competing in his 6th demolition derby during this year's Washington County Ag Expo and he couldn't be more excited. He explains the process of creating a demolition derby car is not like your average trip to the auto body shop. The car must be stripped of all glass and plastic pieces, including windows, mirrors, and head or tail lights. Fishack also welds three of the four car doors shut and also welds metal bars and fencing to replace the now-removed windshield.  

Cheers filled the air as Steve Hines drove the Belmar First Aid Squad's 1938 Ford ambulance one last time. As Hines pressed on the gas Friday, the sirens sung. He gave the 83-year-old ambulance as much gas as it would take to accelerate onto a truck that would drive it approximately 650 miles to the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, Michigan — the ambulance's new home. Hines said he felt a little emotional. "You know, folks came out and it's a part of history going down the road — good history," he said. Hines was a member of Belmar's First Aid Squad since 1975. His father joined in 1938. "Me and my brother stepped right into the first aid squad because it was something you did back then," said Hines. The squad disbanded in March due to financial strain and now they say goodbye to an ambulance that is symbolic of the squad's history, a history that let go of many ambulances in their time, but not this one.