Another Fire

Another one of my neighbors' houses burned down this morning! While I do think this was an accident, since it started as a chimney fire, it does seem more than a little freaky. Two years ago, the house, next to the one that burned down today, burned down, after undergoing major renovations. A year ago, the house across from ours burned to the ground. About 6 months ago, the gas station on the corner of our street and 70 burned, caused by a truck running into the station's air conditioner. Two of the houses were yellow. The fire department even attended a Thanksgiving oven fire at a different house, the year before last.

It's hard to fathom what it must be like to lose all of one's possessions in a fire. Homes and their contents are things we often take for granted. Today our neighbors lost everything, possibly even their dog. It must be devastating. One just has to be thankful that no human lives have been lost in any of these fires.

Two other major fires in Hillsborough in the past year were the Dual Supply Hardware store in downtown Hillsborough and the Heartland Steakhouse, just a couple weeks ago. Dual Supply was a wonderful quaint little hardware store, jam packed with just about every part you could possibly want, so it was sad to see that go. I'm not sure whether they are or have been rebuilding or not.

Remember to check your smoke alarms and make sure they're working. Stop to think about how you would get out of your house or apartment given fires in different locations. As I'm writing this, I'm listening on radio to another heavily involved structure fire in a different part of the county. Thinking about what you would do in such a situation is never a waste of your time. Also remember to call 911 as soon as you think there's a fire, because just minutes can make a huge difference in how much of your home you have left.