Firefighters from a half-dozen departments battled a blaze Friday night that gutted the VFW Post in Covington, Indiana. Tyler Nolan, a Covington Firefighter and spokesman for the department, explained what firefighters found when they arrived….
{AUDIO: ‘’Everybody that was inside had got out. The bartender said that they could smell smoke, but wasn’t sure. She opened a door and smoke started coming out and that’s when they dialed 9-1-1. And it was pretty well involved inside when Covington arrived on the scene to my knowledge.’’}
(Just a few of the firefighters who were on the scene Friday night. Citizens and businesses around the area donated lots of water, Gatorade, food and other items to help the firefighters.)
Nolan (shown in photo) says multiple fire departments were called to help douse the flames…
{AUDIO: ‘’We’ve got West Lebanon, Veedersburg, Covington, Mellott, Attica, and Perrysville’s here. We’ve got a lot of guys – probably got about I would say, maybe 50 to 70 guys, I’m not sure – including EMTs. We got Fountain County EMS here.}
(Note: Shortly after this interview Hillsboro Firefighters were also called for help.)
Fountain County EMS checked few firefighters for possible heat exhaustion, and Nolan said a couple was transported to a hospital to be checked but that they were okay.
(Attica Firefighters attack the blaze from above.)
Nolan also noted some people who were watching the firefighters voiced regrets for items lost in the fire….
{AUDIO: ‘’It’s a shame to see it go. I guess there’s a lot of military memorabilia in there that’s lost, and a lot of people are torn by it. And it’s definitely an idol for our town, I would say. It’s a tragedy. I hate to see it lost but maybe the VFW itself can regain from this.’’}
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
