Sunday fires draw out city and rural departments, again      

[MAY 16, 2005]  Last year it was cyclical storms that repeated on the same days every week. This year it seems to be fires on Sunday. Last week the Lincoln City Fire Department battled a blaze near downtown that started in one of the Three Sisters apartment houses and quickly jumped to the two other houses next to it.

About 1:15 p.m. yesterday dark smoke again darkened the sky on the outskirts of Lincoln. Lincoln Rural Fire Department responded to the call.

A large pile of tires at the tire shredding plant near Interstate 55 on Lincoln's north end had caught on fire. Chief Dean Kukuck said that rubber burns a long time. An end loader was used to spread the pile out and, at that, it took two hours to make certain the fire was out.

Fire departments from Hartsburg-Emden and Atlanta also assisted.

No cause was determined.

Smoking is prohibited inside the Logan County Courthouse, but if you stop in there today, you might wonder. An alarm triggered by smoke sent the Lincoln City Fire Department over to the courthouse at 5:25 p.m. on Sunday.

A smoldering vacuum cleaner and bag from the third floor janitor's closet was dragged outside.

The cleaning man reported that the sweeper had been put away after it acted up and made some funny noises. The sheriff was on scene, but the vacuum cleaner was not arrested.

Concrete ceiling designed to be fireproof kept out water as well from offices below the closet. Evans Restoration Co. from Springfield was brought in to clean up smoke and water. Maintenance also worked all night to help in the cleanup.

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