09/22/2026
We wanted to take a minute to give some thanks where they are due. On Friday afternoon we were paged to a call of smoke in a building. When we arrived on scene we discovered a working structure fire with extension into the ceiling. A call was immediately put out for mutual aid to Hecker Fire Department. From there, additional mutual aid calls were made to Baldwin Fire Department, Waterloo Fire Department, Prairie du Rocher Fire Department and Evansville Volunteer Fire Department which all arrived with apparatus and manpower. Thank you, always, for answering the call for help!
As well, thank you to Red Bud Police Department and Randolph County Sheriff's Office for traffic control, Illinois State Fire Marshal office for sending an investigator and a thermal drone. Last, but certainly not least a shout out to City of Red Bud, IL Utility Workers - when we arrived on scene they were already working to cut power to the building to allow us to work safely, as well they provided extra labor, secured adjacent property and structures and helped supply water and sports drinks and reconnected power when the scene was cleared. They are an integral part to many of our scenes in town and they are always ready to help. We are lucky to have such a great crew.
Finally, we have to thank the community for immediately looking for ways to help and for Casey's for bringing cases of water and sports drinks. It is always appreciated when the community steps up. That being said, we do want everyone to know we have procedures in place for these types of incidents and we are always happy to educate the community on how we operate. Our first out truck has a mini fridge full of cold water on it, which is enough to keep the inital firefighters going while our pick truck and air trailer are being brought to the scene. The air trailer, serves a double purpose as a rehab center, carrying its own mini fridge of water, portable tents to build shade, lawn chairs and the entire trailer has an air conditioner system that runs off its own generator so people can go in it and cool off as needed. The guys that bring that truck also throw in a large cooler of water and sports drinks that stays packed at the firehouse so it can be quickly loaded and driven to the scene. We are also sometimes lucky to have EMS on scene to monitor guys during rehab and treat them if necessary. We were lucky to have MedStar Ambulance on scene taking care of our guys.
While we were able to contain the fire to the initial building and extinguish it, it had traveled quickly through the ceilings and destroyed an apartment that 2 people occupied, who now have lost their home and contents and it completely destroyed 2 businesses and resulted in heavy smoke damage to another that will likely require extensive restoration. There was also minor smoke damage to an adjacent business. Within hours, the community was rallying as they always do to get needed supplies to the people that lost their home. The loss of the only laundromat in town now means that many people that relied on it to do their laundry will have to travel out of town, so the ripples extend much further than the owners and the tenants. Also, another young business owner who was just getting started lost most of her equipment and has to restart. We are keeping everyone affected in our thoughts.
Thank you to the community of Red Bud and to all of our emergency service partners who always show up when the call goes out. It just goes to show how intertwined all of our communities really are and that we all have to look out for eachother.
