fire

Smoke is showing from a train car that is stopped in the Upton Road area, Batavia.

East Pembroke fire is responding.

City fire responded to a kitchen fire at 27 Tracy Ave., Batavia, this afternoon that caused an estimated $1,000 in damage.

The fire was reported at 4:38 p.m. and was deemed accidental, according to a press release.

Engine 11 arrived three minutes after the alarm and reported smoke showing. The residents evacuated.

Once inside, firefighters found a pot of grease on fire on the stove with flames extending into other combustibles nearby. The crew smothered the fire by putting a lid on the pot and used a fire extinguisher to knock down the remaining fire on a cabinet and wall paneling.

Crews were also able to locate and remove a pet rabbit from the home.

City fire remained on scene for about an hour checking for extension and ventilating the structure.

The estimated building damage is $200 and contents damage is put at $800.

A house fire is reported at 31 East Ave. in the Village of Attica. Alexander Fire Department is called to provide mutual aid to Attica in fighting the blaze, along with Bethany for rehab. The location is between Prospect Street and Putnam Place.

UPDATE 5:08 a.m.: Fire out. Checking for extensions. Bethany can go back in service.

A structure fire is reported in the basement of the Cargill facility in Alexander, located at 3540 Railroad Ave. There is heavy black smoke spewing from the building and it is being evacuated.

Alexander fire is responding along with Town of Batavia, Bethany, Darien, the city's Fast Team and East Pembroke.

UPDATE 12:17 p.m.: City fire's first platoon is requested to the headquarters on Evans Street. A crew from Darien is also asked to stand by in quarters.

UPDATE 12:35 p.m.: Fire is out. Ventilating.

The Spirit Halloween store's back room in the Batavia Commons on West Main Street is filling with smoke. The building is being evacuated. City fire is responding.

UPDATE 2 p.m.: Chief Jim Maxwell at the scene said that an employee started smelling something suspicious around 11 a.m., then later went into the back room and found it hazy. That's when the fire department was called. A thermal imaging camera reveals no heat source. They are continuing to investigate but think it may be that a ballast burned out.

Smoke is reported in an apartment at 53 W. Main St., the Corfu Meadow Apartments, #111. The city's Fast Team is called to respond along with Mercy medics and volunteer fire departments in Corfu, Indian Falls, Darien, East Pembroke and Pembroke.

UPDATE 4:50 p.m.: A responder from Corfu command on scene reports smoke showing. The building is being evacuated. The call has gone to a second alarm.

UPDATE 4:52 p.m.: The city's fourth platoon is called to headquarters.

UPDATE 4:54 p.m.: Corfu command cancels response from Darien, Pembroke and Indian Falls.

UPDATE 4:56 p.m.: Units not already at the scene can go back in service per Corfu command.

UPDATE 5:40 p.m.: Corfu assignment back in service.

A grass fire is reportedly moving from the Thruway near the Le Roy exit -- between mile marker 377 and 378, eastbound -- and toward some woods. Le Roy Fire Department is responding.

An ATV is reportedly on fire at Bank and Vine street. City firefighters are en route.

A structure fire is reported at 8062 Harris Road. Le Roy and Pavilion fire departments are responding. The location is said to be a metal-working shop behind a residence. It's by Linwood and Asbury roads.

UPDATE 2:29 p.m.: "It's going to be a stove fire, knocked down in that shop," says a dispatcher.

A large field fire that is heading toward a house is reported at 620 Wyoming Road, Town of Covington.

That's part of the Pavilion Fire District and Pavilion fire is responding.

There is also a vehicle in the fire's path.

UPDATE 3 p.m.: Pavilion command reports being set with two engines that are responding.

A large rubbish fire which got out of control is reported by law enforcement on scene at Galloway Road, just west of Macomber Road. East Pembroke Fire Department is responding along with mutual aid from Alabama, Oakfield and the Town of Batavia.

UPDATE 3:06 p.m.: Elba, Pembroke and Indian Falls fire departments are responding in non-emergency mode.

An oven fire is reported at 4 Evergreen Drive. City firefighters are responding. The location is between North Spruce and Vine streets.

A grass fire is reported behind 20 N. Spruce St. City firefighters are responding.

UPDATE 12:21 p.m.: Fire is out. City assignment is back in service.

Call coming in at a location on Main Road, Corfu, between Church Street and Slusser Road, of a possible explosion. East Pembroke fire along with Corfu are dispatched.

UPDATE: Report of a small campfire, nothing major.

A person walked to Batavia Police headquarters and reported that a person started a fire in a drain on Jefferson Square by the Tonawanda Valley Federal Credit Union. The person provided no other information. City fire is responding.

UPDATE 4:45 p.m. (By Howard): There are witnesses. One version of the story is that a 20-year-old male obtained nail polish remover, had a candle, and started a fire and dropped it down the storm drain grate. Two teenagers then tried to put the fire out with a water bottle. City fire responded. The flame was about an inch high when they arrived and it took less than 60 seconds to extinguish. An investigation is being conducted.

A barn fire is reported in the area of the intersection of Conlon and North roads. Le Roy Fire Department and Ambulance Service are responding, along with mutual aid from Bergen, Mumford and Caledonia.

UPDATE 1:19 p.m.: The call has gone to a second alarm. Pavilion, Stafford and the Town of Batavia Fast Team are called. A firefighter on scene reports seeing flames inside the structure.

UPDATE 1:24 p.m.: A burner is being used at the barn, a firefighter confirms. No barn fire. Units are told to go back in service.

Smoke coming from a residence is reported at 6970 W. Bergen Road. Bergen fire is responding along with mutual aid from Le Roy, and Mercy medics are called in, too. The location is said to be across from the Byron-Bergen track field.

UPDATE 6:54 p.m.: The call came in from a person across the street who said smoke could be seen coming "from the top of the residence." It is not yet known if the house is occupied.

UPDATE 7 p.m.: A fire truck from Churchville is also en route. Fire Police are requested to shut down traffic at Byron-Bergen Central School and Dublin Road.

UPDATE 7:27 p.m.: Bergen command has released Le Roy and Churchville, which are both now returning to service.

A fire with multiple explosions, "multiple vehicles, possibly tankers involved," is reported at Kistner Concrete Products, Inc., 8713 Read Road, Town of Pembroke. East Pembroke fire chief responding told dispatch "I can't get close enough -- multiple explosions." East Pembroke Fire Department is responding along with mutual aid from Oakfield, Darien, Alexander and Town of Batavia.

UPDATE 12:08 a.m.: Pembroke Fire Department is asked to stand by in East Pembroke's fire hall.

UPDATE 12:09 a.m.: Mercy medic #2 is requested to the scene on Read Road.

UPDATE 12:18 a.m.: A dispatcher tells command: "My partner spoke with the owner and he explained what was happening. He's been updated about the situation."

UPDATE 12:22 a.m.: Howard at the scene says the fire is out. A semi-truck was completely destroyed and a flatbed truck adjacent to it was heavily damaged.

UPDATE 12:29 a.m.: East Pembroke Fire Chief Don Newton told Howard: "I don't know what blew up. We were sitting at the fire hall when we heard the explosion. I've heard tires explode and they never sounded that loud."

UPDATE 1:55 a.m.: Photos and more information from Chief Don Newton.

Newton said he and two other members of the department were burning the midnight oil at the Fire Hall working on reports when they heard a series of booms.

"It sounded like thunder," Newton said. "Well, actually, it sounded like more than thunder, so we walked outside then I heard about 10 more explosions and I said there's more than just thunder going on."

Newton and the other firefighters got into his personal vehicle and went out to scout the area. A short drive down Route 5 and they spotted the orange glow in the sky at Kistner Concrete. They swung down Bennett Road, but couldn't get into the yard because of the locked gates and barriers. Newton said he could see a truck was on fire and it looked as though the fire could have spread to other vehicles. He was worried whether there might be a structure nearby.

"I couldn't tell if there was a building around it or not because the smoke was thick and it was black and it was dark," Newton said. "You couldn't see anything except for the orange glow."

Newton radioed dispatch and immediately requested a second alarm. He took the firefighters with him back to the Fire Hall and they rolled two engines.

The gate off Read Road was locked, so Newton used one of the trucks to pull it down so they could get access to the fire.

Soon, other volunteers arrived on scene and the East Pembroke crew with the aid of Oakfield, Town of Batavia, Darien and Alexander, was able to quickly get the fire knocked down (Pembroke and Indian Falls provided fill-in at East Pembroke's hall).

The quick response likely saved another truck that was sitting next to the one that caught fire as well as a piece of machinery on the neighboring flatbed trailer.

The cause of the fire is still undetermined, but was possibly electrical.

The truck's saddle tanks were brimming with fuel, ready for the next day's work, but a lot of things could have exploded, not just those tanks.

"The explosions could have been everything from tires to the fuel tanks to the air chambers," Newton said. "There's a lot of pressurized units on these trucks. This truck was last used on Friday, so it's very possible everything could still have been pressurized on it."

People reported hearing the explosions as far away as Wortendyke Road and the Village of Corfu.

A caller reports a pile of logs on fire got out of control and is now posing exposure threats on several fronts of the property at 2245 Lewiston Road. Alabama Fire Department is responding along with mutual aid from Oakfield.

UPDATE 6:17 p.m.: Fire is out. Assignment is back in service.