Just some stories about the added hardships coming with fires in the current "arctic vortex" weather here and in Canada
From KFVS in Missouri:
SCOTT COUNTY, MO (KFVS) -
Cold temperatures are certainly causing more than inconveniences around the Heartland. They're also making it harder for firefighters to do their jobs.
As firefighters in Scott County tried to put out the flames at a house fire Sunday night, equipment was freezing. That made extinguishing the flames very difficult.
Scott County Rural Fire and Rescue Chief Jeremy Perrien said crews were only about to use one of the trucks on scene to put out the fire on Estate Drive because the water valves were freezing solid. That made it impossible to use that water to extinguish the flames.
Perrien said everyone inside that house was okay, but these cold temperatures really made their job difficult.
"The valves were freezing up," Chief Perrien said. "All of the grounds of the operation [were frozen]. It was like trying to fight fire on a skating rink. Regulators on our air packs were freezing."
Perrien said he's been a firefighter for 16 years and has never had freezing problems like these.
And from Quebec, one of the worst stories
By Matthieu Belanger
L'ISLE-VERTE, Quebec (Reuters) - Police will spend Thursday night sifting through the frozen ruins of a wooden, three-story residence for the elderly that burned down in the Eastern Canadian province of Quebec, killing at least three people and leaving 30 more missing.
Fanned by high winds, the early morning fire engulfed an older section of the Residence du Havre in the small community of L'Isle-Verte on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River about 230 km (140 miles) northeast of Quebec City.
The building only had a partial sprinkler system, according to a document filed by the residence. Acting Mayor Ginette Caron said many of the residents had used wheel chairs or walkers, while some had Alzheimer's disease.
Firemen battled for five hours in temperatures as low as minus 22 Celsius (minus 7.6 Fahrenheit) to extinguish the blaze.
The number of dead and missing remained unchanged all day.
"The problem we face now is the weather conditions. To fight the fire, water had to be used, and that water has frozen," Quebec police spokesman Guy Lapointe told a briefing.
Police intend to work carefully, both to stay safe in the extremely difficult conditions and to ensure that the remains of potential victims remain intact, he added.
"In the next few hours, if all goes well, we'll begin to work on scene and, if the lighting we've brought in allows it, the objective is to work through the night," said Lapointe. Continued...
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