Fire destroys Rivers area farm house
- Details
- Published on Wednesday, March 21, 2018
By Sheila Runions
Rivers Banner
An astute passerby made a 911 call in the early afternoon of Monday, March 19. Emergency personnel from Rivers were dispatched and according to Rivers-Daly fire chief Richard Brown, they were working at the scene in 12 minutes. Site of the blaze was a half-mile east of Jct. 250/259 near Wheatland.
“Curtis Wiebe called it in; he saw smoke coming from the trailer. We got called at 1313 and were on scene, with water going, by 1325. I called for mutual aid from Whitehead fire before we left the fire hall.”
Because the fire was not in town, hydrants were not an option for a continual supply of water. Brown asked Rapid City Fire Department and Deerboine Colony to help by hauling water; Whitehead Fire Department brought both water and workers.
“We only responded with six firefighters initially; six more members responded within 20 minutes. Whitehead fire brought seven guys and all their trucks. We also called Rapid City for water only and we called Deerboine for their water tanker; we like to have water sitting and waiting to be used rather than waiting for water.” (In total, some 20 trips for water were made.
One end of the trailer was engulfed in heavy smoke and fire could be seen shooting through the roof when the department arrived. They initially tried to contain the fire from within and without, but ultimately withdrew from the home because of safety reasons.
“One attack team fought it from the outside while an interior attack team went in to try to stop the fire spreading from the bedroom to the kitchen. We were only inside for approximately 10 minutes before the roof started collapsing, at which point we went straight to an aggressive defensive attack.”
Their defence efforts were worthwhile because they saved a double car garage which was only four feet from the trailer. Members considered the fight won by 8:30 p.m. when the last of the volunteers cleared the area and returned to their respective homes.
“I would like to thank all the firefighters who responded; everyone did a great job in a stressful situation. I would also like to thank their employers for allowing them to leave their jobs to serve our community. I would also like to thank Shelly Mom’s Kitchen for supplying us with food and refreshments.”
Although parts still stand, the insured trailer is considered a complete loss because of a suspected electrical problem. The initial estimated dollar value attached to this claim is $150,000.
