VIDEO/PHOTOS: Dozens of cars burned Saturday afternoon in Cahokia Heights at a tow lot fire, creating a large smoke plume visible from St. Louis. ‘We had the whole back lot of a tow company on fire,” Cahokia Fire Department Deputy Chief Jordan Simmons said.

“They were moving vehicles around with heavy equipment and struck the battery on a hybrid vehicle which caused the fire.” “A lot of smoke. You can actually see it from in the far distance, so I came down to see what was going on and just a lot of flames,” witness and former Kinloch fire deputy Se’an Whiteside said.

According to the St. Clair County Emergency Management Agency, the cars were on fire at Patterson Towing LLC at 499 N. 73rd St. At least 10 fire departments responded to the scene, including Midway, Camp Jackson, Cahokia, East St. Louis, Prairie Du Pont, Church Road, Alorton, Hollywood Heights, Millstadt and Villa Hills.

Deputy Chief Simmons said it took crews at least 8 hours to extinguish the flames. “The hydrant wasn’t enough to supply the amount of water that we needed at the time. We had to call in tankers, and in doing so, we’ve flown 60,000 gallons of water. About 20 trips, tankers in total,” Simmons said.

The owner of the tow lot said an electrical issue sparked the fire and damaged at least 100 cars. The owner told 5 On Your Side that the tow lot mainly contained junk cars being scrapped. Despite the fire, he plans on reopening the business soon.

KSDK-TV NBC 5 St. Louis

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Two Lexington firefighters have made and continue to make world history in the Firefighter Challenge League. Both Sarah McGill and Andrew Cook received awards in the 2025 Firefighter Challenge Championship Series.

The Firefighter Challenge League is an official sporting league designed for firefighters across the nation, regardless of their experience or status, to receive recognition for their emergency services.

Each year, the league hosts the Firefighter Challenge Championship Series, a set of competitions allowing firefighters across the nation to compete with each other in different obstacle courses. Participants in each challenge are timed based on how fast they can complete the criteria for each specific obstacle course.

According to the Firefighter Challenge League, both firefighters are members of the Firefighter Challenge League Lion’s Den, an award and honor for athletes who can meet a certain amount of criteria.

In 2021, McGill received the award for a female to have a run-time less than or equal to three minutes. In 2022, Cook received the award for having a run-time less than or equal to 100 seconds.

WTVQ-TV ABC 36 Lexington

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A fire at Olalla Food Center on Sunday afternoon forced employees and customers to evacuate and has closed the store due to damages. According to a statement from South Kitsap Fire & Rescue, crews responded to a commercial structure fire at the store on Olalla Valley Road around 12:30 p.m. April 12, Capt. Laine Desilets, public information officer with South Kitsap Fire & Rescue, said.

Employees reportedly evacuated with two customers after they heard a loud sound from the back storeroom, and proceeded to call 911. According to Desilets, the first crews at the scene observed heavy smoke and flames coming from an exterior access door. A total of 22 apparatus from SKFR, Bremerton Fire Department, Key Peninsula Fire, Gig Harbor Fire and Medic One arrived to extinguish the fire.

Desilets said it took firefighters just under an hour to control the fire, and some crews remained at the store for about three hours. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Kitsap County Fire Marshal. No civilians or emergency responders were injured, Desliets said, although the Olalla Food Center sustained extensive damages to the building’s interior. An estimate of damage to the building is currently unknown.

Kitsap Sun – Metered Site

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VIDEO: A massive fire happened at an historic building in Cullman. Crews got the initial call to the Stiefelmeyer Building before dawn. The building houses multiple businesses.

Cullman Fire Chief Darren Peeples said they arrived at the scene at about 4 a.m. and would most likely be there till midnight or later. While the blaze is contained, there were still flames in pockets and voids in the roof and attic area of the 134-year-old building.

It took crews and equipment from Cullman and several other jurisdictions to get the massive blaze under control. Dozens of residents camped nearby to watch the 134-year-old structure go up in flames.

WVTM-TV NBC 13 Birmingham

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The Yakima County Sheriff’s Office and fire officials are investigating a house fire that killed one person on Friday morning. According to the YCSO, emergency responders heard reports of a fire at a home on the 7,000-block of north Track Road at about 8 a.m. on April 10. Firefighters arrived to find a home fully involved in flames, and set to containing the blaze. According to the Yakima County Sheriff’s Office, one person is confirmed to have died as a result of the fire. It is currently unknown if there are other injuries. The cause of the fire is unknown, and is under investigation.

Apple Valley News Now

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