VIDEO: A fire destroyed a single-family home and a large attached shop in Skagit County, according to the Big Lake Fire Department. The victims of the fire, Matt Johnson and Kayla Bowen, tell KING 5 they were the only people who lived in the damaged property. They said that, in addition to the structure damage, both of their daily vehicles were destroyed by the blaze.

“It’s overwhelming. I think I’m in shock, still. Initially, I was crying but now I feel like I’m in shock or something. It’s very overwhelming to take it all in,” said Bowen. Neither Bowen nor Johnson were inside the home when it caught fire; Johnson said he was outside while Bowen was in Johnson’s father’s house, about 50 yards away on the same property. “I ran out but by the time time I came out, it was too late to hose it down or anything,” said Bowen.

KING-TV NBC 5 Seattle

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PHOTOS: Firefighters battled to contain a massive blaze that sparked Friday evening at a historic wharf in Portland, Maine. One building was destroyed in the fire, and others were damaged in the blaze that broke out on the Custom House Wharf, FOX 23 reported.

The Old Port in Portland was a major 19th century and early 20th century hub for the commercial fishing industry in the area and is now a popular tourist area with restaurants and shops; working fisherman still keep their boats there.

“Unfortunately, it looked like the fire had a pretty good head start on us when we got down here, but the first companies did a great job. And they made a really aggressive attack to keep it from spreading down the rest of the wharf,” Deputy Fire Chief Jon Hendricks told us.

FOX News

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VIDEO: The Buffalo Fire Department on Saturday marked the 42nd anniversary of the deadliest tragedies in its history, honoring the lives of five firefighters and two civilians killed in a propane tank explosion in 1983. Firefighters, families of the victims and community members gathered at the memorial site on North Division Street, where the explosion leveled a warehouse and destroyed an entire city block just days after Christmas.

The call came in at 8:23 p.m. on Dec. 27, 1983, reporting a propane gas leak inside a warehouse. Moments after firefighters arrived on scene, the tank exploded. “Being on the fire department, you never know what you’re going to run into,” recalled Fred Langdon, who was Buffalo’s fire commissioner at the time

“I was at a dinner, and I came right away,” Langdon said. “In fact, we felt the explosion where I was, and I spent the night there,” Langdon said. The blast killed firefighters Michael Austin, Michael Catanzarro, James Lickfeld, Anthony Waszkielewicz and Matthew Colpoys — and the civilians, Alfred and Jessie Arnold. In the decades since, the corner has remained a permanent memorial to their sacrifice.

WGRZ-TV NBC 2 Buffalo

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A Christmas Day rescue operation on Highway 101 near Shaker Church Road turned perilous when a large tree nearly struck a Thurston County deputy. Sheriff Sanders reported that deputies, alongside Washington State Patrol and Griffin Fire responded to a single-vehicle rollover crash that had sent the vehicle down an embankment.

While deputies and medics were 20 feet into the ravine providing medical assistance, the tree fell, narrowly missing a deputy, Sheriff Sanders said. The driver of the vehicle was evaluated at the scene and found not to be impaired. The driver was then transported to the hospital in stable condition.

KOMO-TV ABC 4 Seattle

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VIDEO: A car fire on northbound Interstate 5 near the 128th Street SW exit was put out quickly Friday morning, with no injuries reported, according to South County Fire. Crews responded just before 10 a.m. to a stretch of I-5 south of the 128th Street SW exit. When firefighters arrived, they found the engine compartment of a Jeep Liberty fully on fire.

The passenger had already exited the vehicle and was standing in a safe location away from traffic. Firefighters extinguished the flames in less than three minutes, preventing the fire from spreading beyond the engine area and into the passenger compartment. No injuries were reported. When firefighters arrived, they found the engine compartment of a Jeep Liberty fully on fire.

KIRO-TV CBS 7 Seattle

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