From Suburban Journals

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Monday, July 27, 2009

Curious crowds gathered behind strips of red caution tape, pointing and aiming video cameras towards the thick black smoke pouring from the roof at 1498 Vandalia.

Suddenly - amidst the pungent smell of burnt ash - two firefighters burst from a side door on their knees, dragging a limp body over a leaking hose and into the parking lot.

Thankfully, this time the victim was only a dummy and the rescue effort was only a drill.

On Monday and Tuesday, fire departments from Collinsville, Troy and Maryville gathered at the building - currently owned by Meadow Heights Baptist Church - for two evenings of intense training.

During each exercise, a stack of wooden pallets and straw was set on fire inside the building. As the flames quickly spread across the walls and ceiling, a team of four was dispatched from about a block away. Their mission was to rescue the person from inside and put out the blaze.

For some of the younger firefighters, the exercise was their first time inside a burning building. Unable to see through the smoke in an unfamiliar building, Nichols said responders could learn important lessons about fire suppression, search and rescue and accountability.

"We very much appreciate the church for stepping up to the plate," said Collinsville Fire Chief Peter Stehman. "Live fire training. There's no substitute for it."

Each training session took between 30 and 45 minutes, the walls getting more blackened each time. Several spectators sat in cars next door at the Sonic restaurant, while others stood in the nearby patches of grass to watch.

Longtime Collinsville resident Spike Bryant, 66, came out to watch the training. He remembers the building briefly starting out about 45-50 years ago as Casey's Restaurant. He later became a regular customer when the structure housed Northgate Restaurant.

"They moved across the street in the mid-'70s and business crashed," he said.

Not long after Northgate moved out, the building was purchased by Meadow Heights Baptist Church, who has been using it ever since for youth services and as a fellowship hall. Boy Scout Troop 1093 has also used the site for meetings for over 25 years.

Senior Pastor Jim Donahue said demolition became necessary to meet the city's minimum parking requirements, amidst construction of a large church addition. He is hoping the new section, which will include educational classrooms and a gymnasium/fellowship hall, will be open by the late fall.

In addition to the old restaurant, three other buildings owned by the church are set for eventual demolition. They include an old bus/van garage and some portable trailers once used by the Collinsville School District.

Collinsville Fire Department officials say this was the first time in several years they have been able to conduct live fire training.

The department has been in preliminary negotiations to do "forceful entry" training at the old Wal-Mart store on Belt Line Road, which is expected to eventually be torn down to make way for a new Kohl's. However, even if those plans work out, that training will not include setting the building on fire.