A city’s fire department has to perform as a well-oiled machine, working in  flawless conjunction.  Watching our fire department battle the huge fire on Walnut Street, I saw our guys dance a ballet with the fiery flames and none could have done a more splendid job. 
Betty Adams and I were polishing off the Wednesday edition when someone jolted us out of our work yelling something about a fire.  At first,  I thought she said that our dumpster was on fire.  From the way the lady was frantically pounding on the door, I knew it was a serious fire. I looked up and saw threads of smoke billowing around our building.  Betty and I were quick to grab the phone. I went around our building to see smoke exiting through the windows of the old pawnshop on Walnut.  That building and ours share an alley so it is literally at our back door.  I was there in seconds.  The first thing to hit me was the color of the smoke and the way it crept up the building.  It seemed to caress the bricks in a very strange, lifelike way.  The uniforms showed up and began the fight with nature’s scorching fingers.  They fought valiantly, and danced like boxers with the fire.  They battled it from four sides as the wind whipped smoke in their way.   The heat became very intense and the fire threw its fury sky high.
 As I scrambled across the dangerous zone, catching photos of them in the setting sun with my camera, I couldn’t help but admire their determination and dedication.    The pictures captured the flames, smoke, fire fighters and the rainbows their streams of water threw.  I have images of fire fighters gripping the hose three at a time with the sun streaming through the smoke   It seemed that each picture I took, caught the hard work and spirit of those fire fighters that were risking their lives.  And these guys weren’t risking their lives to save a building full of people; they were risking their lives to save the businesses in the area.  They were  brothers in fire.   We could have lost some of our own on a dilapidated structure that only serves to remind of us times past.  That building hasn’t been good for anything except to attract vandals, who then burn it up .  The chief told me that the fire wasn’t the first they have fought at that address.
 Our fire fighters were serious about winning that boxing match with the fire. I respect and thank them for all that they did Tuesday and every other time they jump on that red fire engine, into the mouth of the inferno and flames.