It was during a shift change at 2:30 p.m. on Friday, May 3, 1991, when employees of Central Storage Warehouse on Cottage Grove Road discussed mechanical problems with a battery-powered forklift.
The forklift operator changed the batteries in an attempt to fix the lift, but the machine still wouldn’t operate. They set aside the repairs for the moment and proceeded to load semi trailers with butter using a different forklift.
About an hour later, that same operator heard a sound “similar to a torch being lit, only much louder.” He saw blue flames coming off the floor around the cab area of the forklift he’d just attempted to repair. So began what would become known as “The Butter Fire.”
First Madison Fire Department units were dispatched at 3:32 p.m. Within 10 minutes, multiple 911 callers were reporting a huge fire with 300-foot flames and a wall blown out of the warehouse. A second alarm was declared at 3:35 p.m., but that still would not be enough to manage the fast-growing blaze fueled by butter, lard, and other food products.
By 6:00 p.m., the fire spread from Building 1 to Building 2, and a third-alarm was raised. Firefighters were ordered off the roof of Building 3 due to the potential for Building 2 collapsing into it. Building 2 did collapse around 11:00 p.m. All fire personnel were accounted for within seconds of the collapse.
Other Dane County fire departments provided mutual aid to Madison Fire on scene, assisting with defensive fire attacks overnight. They also staffed Madison fire stations and responded to other routine emergencies still occurring around the city.
Around midnight, the Central Storage fire began to threaten the facility’s anhydrous ammonia tanks, prompting a half-mile evacuation of approximately 3,000 residents. Central Storage personnel worked to remove as many hazardous materials from the site as they could.
Fire reached the mechanical refrigeration equipment corridor around 1:30 a.m. Saturday, May 4, but the fire was stopped about an hour later thanks to an aggressive fire attack and flowing sprinkler heads.
A fire this size presents a multitude of challenges for responding firefighters, but in this case, efforts were severely impaired by melted butter, cheese, and lard.
The heat of the fire turned millions of pounds of butter into flowing liquid. Holding hand lines, climbing ladders, climbing stairs, and even walking became dangerous. In some locations, the greasy solids were waist deep.
The cold water being applied to the molten dairy products turned the liquid back into a solid. Melted butter oozed from every building opening, filled the street, overflowed nearby ditches and gutters, and threatened local waterways.
With initial property damage estimated at $7.5 million, content loss at $70 million, and $1 million in cleanup costs, there’s no argument this dairy fire in the Dairy State was the largest and most difficult the Madison Fire Department has ever confronted.
City of Madison
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Posted: May 5, 2026
Body camera footage captured the moment a Detroit firefighter risked his life to pull a woman from a burning SUV on the city’s west side. The footage shows firefighter Donald Faulkner rescuing 52-year-old Latashia Collins from the burning vehicle.
The SUV caught fire after a crash involving a truck on Davison near Petoskey. When Faulkner arrived, Collins was trapped inside with the door locked.
“Tried to pull the door, that’s when I checked all of them, after that I just found the best route and get her out of there with the least injuries as possible,” Faulkner said. He said hearing her cries drove him forward.
“I heard her screaming just to help. I’m from here, I look at all these citizens like family members, so … like it’s my own mom in there,” Faulkner said.
Collins suffered multiple fractures, third-degree burns, and internal bleeding — injuries that required several surgeries.
WXYZ-TV ABC 7 Detroit
The post VIDEO: Michigan firefighter pulls woman from burning SUV, family calls him a hero appeared first on Daily Dispatch.
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Posted: May 5, 2026
A pile of scrap metal caught on fire on North Perry Street on Monday morning, according to the Spokane Fire Department. A heavy column of smoke was visible as fire crews worked to put out the blaze. The initial call reported a car fire near the intersection of East Houston Avenue and North Perry Street. According to firefighters at the scene, the scrap pile was mostly comprised of old RVs and RV parts.
SFD said in a social media post that “the materials included old RVs being broken down and sorted for recycling.” An official cause of the fire has not yet been determined, but SFD said it’s possible it was caused by a lithium ion battery. No businesses or homes were disrupted due to the fire. SFD said one nearby structure was briefly threatened. The fire was brought under control as of around 10:45 a.m.
KHQ-TV NBC 6 Spokane
The post Pile of scrap metal catches fire in Spokane appeared first on Daily Dispatch.
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Posted: May 5, 2026
Seattle firefighters carried out a rope rescue Sunday after getting a report of a person trapped about 40 feet down an embankment in Discovery Park. The Seattle Fire Department said crews responded to the call shortly before 4 p.m. and planned an aerial high-direction rope rescue to bring the patient up the embankment. Firefighters later made contact with the patient, who reported a minor injury and was seated on a shelf down the embankment, according to the department.
Crews cut through thick brush to reach the patient, and firefighters from Rescue Company 1 were lowered down, the department said. Firefighters then lowered the patient down to the beach in a Stokes basket, where crews were staged. Medics evaluated the patient, who turned down transport to the hospital.
KOMO-TV ABC 4 Seattle
The post Seattle firefighters rescue person trapped down embankment at Discovery Park appeared first on Daily Dispatch.
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Posted: May 5, 2026
Fire crews contained a car fire at the intersection of Road 44 and Pearl Street on Sunday afternoon, according to a social media post from Franklin County Fire District 3. The fire district reported multiple explosive sounds being heard in the area. “While crews were on scene, several loud explosions were heard,” the fire district said. “Fire personnel quickly brought the fire under control and prevented it from spreading to a nearby home and surrounding vehicles.”
Several electronic devices powered by lithium ion batteries were found being charged with 12-volt chargers inside the car. While the official cause of the fire hasn’t been determined, the fire district warned the public about increased fire hazard posed by lithium ion batteries.
KNDO-TV NBC 23 Yakima
The post Explosions heard during car fire in Pasco appeared first on Daily Dispatch.
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