BROOKINGS – An employee of Prussman Contracting jumped in a loader and used it to dump snow on a fire at a neighboring business Wednesday afternoon, according to the Brookings Fire Department.
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BROOKINGS – An employee of Prussman Contracting jumped in a loader and used it to dump snow on a fire at a neighboring business Wednesday afternoon, according to the Brookings Fire Department.
It was one of seven calls the firefighters have answered so far this month, the last three all on Wednesday, said Fire Chief Darrell Hartmann.
The wagon fire on Railroad Street was called in at 2:13 p.m. Wednesday.
“It was actually a manure spreader,” Hartmann said, and it was the only thing damaged in the fire. The fire was sparked while repairs were being made to the wagon.
“Right next door is Prussman’s … (they) used a loader, started dumping water and snow. And it really helped out quite a bit,” Hartmann said.
“A building to the west of us was so close to igniting,” said a spokeswoman for Prussman’s, so they called the fire department.
“One of our guys hopped in a loader. I have never seen it move so fast. It was some kind of a ballerina dance,” she added.
The fire department cleared the scene at 2:38 p.m.
That was the BFD’s second call of the day; they were first called at 12:48 a.m. Wednesday to Larson Ice Center for an alarm issue and cleared the scene at 1:31 a.m., Hartmann said.
The third call came at 4:03 p.m. Wednesday for 20731 471st Ave., a small mobile home park north of town, for a reported heavy propane smell, Hartmann said.
“We had three officers and the gas company on scene,” he said. “We weren’t finding anything.”
They cleared the scene at 4:27 p.m.
Hartmann had a reminder for folks out on the roads when they hear sirens.
“We appreciate when people obey the law and pull to the right and come to a complete stop, letting emergency vehicles by. That’s for ambulance, police and fire. You never know, it may be somebody you know, or it could be your place,” Hartmann said.
The Brookings Fire Department answered four other calls this month, according to Jeremy Scott, office/shop manager.
The BFD responded to a fire alarm at 1104 22nd Ave. S. at 8:31 a.m. Tuesday.
“Upon investigation, a pull station was found to have been activated; alarm was reset,” Scott said. Crews cleared the scene at 8:50 a.m.
A gas leak at 6:17 a.m. March 6 sent the crews to 500 Rainbow Parkway.
“A natural gas leak was found, the gas was turned off and turned over to Northwestern Energy,” Scott said. Crews cleared the scene at 6:41 a.m.
A fire alarm at 601 22nd Ave. S. went off at 11:48 a.m. March 3, but crews were cancelled enroute.
The month started with a call at 4:17 a.m. March 1 for an oven that had malfunctioned at 920 Southland Lane No. 109. Since there was no fire, the first officer on the scene unplugged the oven and crews ventilated the apartment. Crews cleared the scene at 4:46 a.m.
Contact Jodelle Greiner at jgreiner@brookingsregister.com.
Prussman Contracting photos: A wagon caught fire on Railroad Street on Wednesday and an employee of Prussman Contracting used a loader to dump snow on it while the Brookings Fire Department was enroute. The wagon was near a building west of Prussman’s, and there was fear the building would catch fire without intervention. The call to Railroad Street was one of three answered by the BFD on Wednesday.
