New Year’s Day fire quickly struck

     On the first day of 2018, the Coal City Fire Protection District was called to extinguish a blaze that started from fireplace embers.
    At 11:23 a.m. on Jan. 1, crews were requested for a structure fire in the 8876 East Teal Lane. Due to its rural location, a handful of neighboring departments were called to assist.
    Lt. Nick Doerfler, the department’s public information officer, reported firefighters quickly extinguished the fire on a deck at the rear of the residence. The cause was determined to be improperly discarded embers.
    No injuries were reported. Estimated damage was under $10,000.
    Enroute to the scene, located northeast of Coal City and north of the covered bridge on Will Road, crews were advised to use caution as temperatures resulted in slick roadways and zero visibility in the area near the Exelon cooling lake.
    Firefighters were on the scene for less than one hour and the mutual aid units were advised to return.
    The call was one of nine handled by Coal City Fire and EMS units on New Year’s Day.