Springfield firefighters were called to 266-268 Centre Street just before 3:00 a.m. on Jan. 1 for a reported structure fire.
When Engine 5 and Ladder 5 arrived, they were confronted with an occupied three-story wood-frame dwelling with heavy fire venting from all floors and all sides of the building. Overhead power lines had broken free from the home and had fallen into the street, preventing crews from accessing the front of the structure.
Companies were forced to set up a defensive attack from across the street with portable monitors and set up their aerial master streams from a distance until power was shut off. This allowed the fire to spread to the three-story building on the Delta exposure.
Seven out of the city's eight engine companies and three out of four ladder companies were on scene, requiring mutual aid to be called to back-fill empty firehouses.
