Fire department responds to structure fire

  • Published
  • By Tech. Sgt. Todd Wivell
  • 28th Bomb Wing Public Affairs
The 28th Bomb Wing fire department responded April 15 to a structure fire located in Box Elder, S.D., approximately one mile south of here. 

Personnel from Box Elder and five Ellsworth firefighters defensively fought the fire for approximately two hours before deciding to let it burn out. All personnel returned without injury. The Ellsworth fire department has responded to over 200 calls since Jan. 1 but this was their first structure fire of the year.
 
"When we arrived on scene, the house was completely engulfed on the right side," said Airman First Class Daniel Lovely, 28th Civil Engineering Squadron firefighter. This was Airman Lovely's first response as an Ellsworth firefighter. "I was the nozzle man, which means I took the hand line off the truck and actually fought the fire." 

When the call came in, I was actually quite calm," said Airman Lovely. "As we left the station and I saw the fire out in the distance, my adrenaline started pumping. I thought, 'Wow ... this is the real thing.'" 

"The fire was fought defensively due to the fact there was too much fire and it was unsafe to enter the facility," said Mr. Thomas Thiele, 28th CES firefighter and crew chief for this incident. "There were no lives at risk so the operation remained defensive." 

Defensive operations in a fire are focused on stopping the spread of the fire to neighboring structures, said Mr. Thiele. 

"Box Elder Fire Department remained on scene and ensured the fire did not spread to adjoining areas," Mr. Thiele said. "The fire was finally extinguished at approximately 3 a.m. the next morning." 

"I felt bad for the individual who lost everything in the fire," said Airman Lovely. "We did what we could, but we were not able to put the fire out." 

Ellsworth firefighters first and foremost promote the use of smoke detectors and remind members to check their units at least twice a year. As a reminder, the best time to do this is when the time changes. 

"People need to make sure that their fire extinguishers work," said Airman Lovely. "In this case, it would have saved this structure." 

The Ellsworth fire department will give fire extinguisher training to any servicemember or their family members when requested. They have a fire extinguisher video available for training on the Ellsworth intranet website at https://intranet1/. They are available to give section or unit training at supervisor requests. To schedule an appointment for either home or site training, please contact the fire department at 385-1113.