Sparklers likely started Bremerton apartment fire
Kitsap Sun (Bremerton, WA)
July 18--BREMERTON, WA -- A mother and kids lighting sparklers on a third-floor balcony started a fast-spreading apartment fire Saturday morning that cost 12 people their homes.
Bremerton Fire Marshall Mike Six found four sparklers on the balcony of the complex at 321 Wycoff Ave., which caught fire around 8 a.m. He spoke to the 24-year-old resident who said she lit two sparklers with her children, ages 3 and 4. After the fireworks burned out, she placed them in a metal ashtray on the railing.
She went inside to bathe one of the kids and came back 10 minutes later to find the balcony ablaze, the sliding glass door shattered by heat and flames lapping inside, Six said.
In a Bremerton Police Department investigation, one officer said he was told that the woman and her children were lighting sparklers just before the fire started. Another was told that the children had been playing with sparklers.
Nobody was seriously injured in the dramatic fire, which could be seen for miles. A 77-year-old woman was taken to Harrison Medical Center with a minor leg injury after dropping about 20 feet from her deck to escape the flames. Bremerton police officers Kelly Meade and J.D. Miller and Navy Region Northwest firefighter Nick Pendergrass, who lives across the street, broke her fall.
"They rescued her from an exterior vantage point that was reasonably safe, but it's a good thing they did because she wouldn't have survived the event," Six said.
Even after escaping the fire, the woman's back was too hot to touch, said a Bremerton policeman.
Eleven other occupants, including six children, got out of the six-unit complex safety, though many lost all of their belongings. None had renter's insurance, according to Bremerton Fire Chief Al Duke.
The police and fire department reports are being forwarded to the Kitsap County Prosecutor's Office for review.
Man killed by dump truck driven by friend
9:32 p.m. Monday, July 18, 2016
Story Highlights
Neil Gayle was thrown from his dump truck in an accident in Covington.Gayle worked for J&G Trucking in Lithonia to provide for his family in Jamaica.
A truck driver killed in a dump truck accident worked in Lithonia to provide for his three children in Jamaica.
Neil Gayle drove dump trucks for G &J Trucking, where his boss and friend, Gilbert Atkinson, described him as “a very good human being,” Channel 2 Action News reported. Gayle had more than 20 years trucking driving experience.
Gayle was headed to pick up a load of asphalt in Covington along Harold Dobbs Road on Sunday when the dump truck behind him – driven by his friend – crashed into his truck, Channel 2 reported. The two trucks went off a bridge and into Yellow River. Gayle was thrown from his truck.
“They started lifting up the trucks they found his body under the bottom of the truck,” Atkinson told Channel 2, “he fell in the river and the truck fell on him.”
Gayle’s friend, who’s from New Jersey, was unfamiliar with the area they were in and followed him around. The friend, whose name has not been released, suffered minor injuries.
The accident hurt those in the trucking community, Atkinson said.
“We have had a lot of stuff but never lost a driver,” he said, “and this one is beyond comprehension it’s just very painful.”
No charges have been filed in the crash, but the investigation continues.
Trustee says cause of Kingsville garage fire may never be known
By MARK TODD mtodd@starbeacon.com
20 hrs ago
KINGSVILLE TOWNSHIP, OHIO — Investigators continue to examine the scene of a Friday morning fire that destroyed Kingsville Township's road department garage and its fleet of vehicles, but an the blaze's exact cause may remain undetermined, Dennis Huey, township trustee, said Monday.
"It's the opinion of many the fire began in the (garage) addition, but we may never really know what started it," he said.
Firefighters from five departments were dispatched to the garage, located on Cemetery Road a short distance from Route 193, at 4:37 a.m. Friday. The original garage, built in 1961 was gutted, while an addition constructed in the rear in the 1980's was completely leveled.
An insurance adjuster was on scene Monday to begin assessing the dollar damage inflicted by the fire. The township lost its entire road and maintenance fleet to the blaze, including three dump trucks, a backhoe, front-end loader and mowing equipment.
On Friday, Neal Stewart, township fire chief and road superintendent, said the township lost "millions" of dollars worth of vehicles, machinery, equipment and tools.
Meanwhile, trustees are fielding numerous calls offering help from a wide range of communities and agencies, Huey said.
"We're getting several offers for free building space" to store equipment as it is replaced, he said. "The Ohio Department of Transportation is willing to loan us two snowplows this winter. We're thankful for all the offers."
The loss of the big trucks is critical because heavy dump trucks are usually built to order, a process that can take many months, township trustees have said. On Monday, Huey said the loan of plows "would be a big bonus."
Trustees have not decided on a course of action, saying more time is needed to assess all the offers of help.
"Everything's still in the works," Huey said. "It's still early. We need to decide which location is the best for the township."
Residents also continue to be helpful, Huey said.
"The community is just shocked," he said. "People have made us all kinds of offers."
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Kingsville Township's garage, equipment destroyed in morning fire
By MARK TODD mtodd@starbeacon.com
Jul 15, 2016
KINGSVILLE TOWNSHIP — The township lost "millions" of dollars worth of equipment and property in an early Friday morning fire.
Neal Stewart is a road superintendent without a department thanks to the blaze, which completely destroyed Kingsville Township's municipal garage and everything inside.
Three dump trucks, a backhoe, front-end loader, mowing equipment and snowplowing gear — along with miscellaneous smaller equipment, hand tools and protective clothing — were wiped out in the blaze, Stewart said.
"There's nothing left," he said Friday at the fire scene. "Everything we had is gone. We're out of business right now. It's a big, big loss."
A damage estimate is pending an inventory of the garage's contents, but Stewart expects the figure to be high because of the loss of so many pieces of heavy equipment.
"In the millions (of dollars)," he said.
The cause is undetermined, but firefighters believe the fire began in the rear of the Cemetery Road building, said Stewart, who also serves as the township's fire chief. Firefighters were dispatched to the scene at 4:27 a.m.
A series of small explosions awoke neighbors, he said. Personnel and equipment from five other departments — Monroe, Sheffield and Plymouth townships, along with North Kingsville and Fire Station 3 in Conneaut — were sent to the scene, Stewart said. More than 35 firefighters arrived to help.
"By the time everyone got here, (the building) was gone," he said.
The state fire marshal's office is investigating, Stewart said.
The shell of the main garage, built in 1962, is still standing, but an addition put on the rear of the bigger building in the 1980's was leveled. The township's salt-storage building was spared, Stewart said.
The building and contents are insured, and an adjuster is scheduled to be on the scene Monday, said township trustee Dennis Huey. The first order of business is to assess the loss and then find a storage site for equipment as it is replaced, he said.
"We need to secure a smaller building for our basic equipment," Huey said.
Some pieces, like lawn mowers, can be found relatively quickly, he said. Others, like dump trucks, are usually custom-built and can take months to arrive, he said.
"We had 40 to 50 years' worth of (accumulated) equipment in there," Huey said. "We're out of business for awhile."
Neighboring communities wasted no time to offer help in any way possible, officials said.
"We have great support, a great working relationship," Stewart said.
Huey agreed.
"The townships have always worked together," he said.
A steady stream of township residents came to the fire scene Friday to sympathize, officials said.
"Residents have been unreal," Stewart said. "They have been up here in tears, crying. People in Kingsville are proud of what we have."
By WRGB STAFF Monday, July 18th 2016
UPDATE - 6:00PM - Fire officials are working with the state Marshall to try to find who started the fire that led to the evacuation of nearby homes.
There is a sign posted on the home offering a $5,000 reward for anyone who knows who is responsible. Call the Arson Watch Reward Program at 1-800-682-9229.
The call came just after 3:30 Monday morning. Pittsfield chief Robert Czerwinski says when they arrived there was already heavy fire on the front porch, the same place where dogs alerted officials of possible accelerants.
"The dog hit a number of spots where there were accelerants in place. So we are pretty confident it was a set fire," said Chief Czerwinski.
He also says firefighters, inside at one point, made it out just in time.
"No sooner those crews came out, the front porch collapsed and the fire started venting itself out the attic windows," Czerwinski said.
The chief said everyone is okay, though a few firefighters have minor injuries.
It's believed two people lived in the duplex, that the other side was vacant. The chief says the house is destroyed and needs to be demolished.
UPDATE: Pittsfield Fire Chief confirms with CBS6 that this fire has been ruled an arson with the assistance of fire investigators with dogs.
UPDATE 5:54AM -- The Pittsfield Fire Department tell us the fire at 13 Robbins Ave is under control. Damage to the structure was through the roof. Crews remain on scene putting out hot spots. No cause has been determined at this time.
Updated:Jul 19 2016 12:43PM EDT
NEW YORK (FOX 5 NY) - A large construction crane has toppled onto the Tappan Zee Bridge. At least two people have been injured. The bridge is closed in both directions. Numerous emergency vehicles are on scene and on the water below.
The boom of the crane landed on the Rockland side of the bridge.
Motorists are advised to avoid the area as traffic is backed-up for several miles in both directions.
