Lightning strikes twice: Two major storm-induced fire calls stretch area crews

A storm system with plenty of air to ground lightning rolled through the Lakeland area Tuesday and the result was a large number of Oneida and Vilas county fire departments called to reports of structure fires in Sugar Camp and St. Germain.

Two separate Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) divisions were activated in response; the first report of a structure fire was at a residence on Kadlec Drive in Sugar Camp at around 3 p.m. 

The hazardous materials (HAZMAT) team from the Rhinelander fire department was called in as, according to emergency radio, there was a 3,000 gallon fuel tank on the property and later, warnings were issued to responding units to avoid one side of the structure as ammunition was going off. 

At around 5 p.m., another MABAS activation was initiated for a fire at Waldmann Construction in St. Germain. 

In a Tuesday night Facebook post, an administrator for the Waldmann Construction page expressed gratitude “to our local fire departments working continuously.”

“We are so grateful our staff is safe and we are only mourning the loss of a building,” the Facebook post read. “Lightning struck our Paint/Cabinet shop but our log home offices and West Shop remain safe thanks to emergency services containing the situation.”

Woodruff fire chief Victor Gee, who’s department had trucks and personnel at both locations as well as another call later Tuesday reporting smoke, said in his 20 years with the department, he’s never seen two MABAS activations like that. 

“The thing is, they were two separate MABAS divisions and they were close together,” he said. “I thought the dispatchers handled that well.”

Minocqua fire chief Rich Carani said “it was a weird storm with all the lightning strikes.”

He had firefighters and a tender at the Waldmann Construction fire as well as at two other locations in Minocqua that were reported lightning strikes, one a home on Hixon Road and the other a residence on Bay View Road. 

“They weren’t significant from a heavy damage perspective but lightning blew out the low voltage components to the house,” Carani said. “Some damage to the exterior but no significant fire or anything.”

He’s been chief of the Minocqua fire department for nearly two years, his background in firefighting including years of experience with the fire department in Libertyville, a Chicago suburb. 

He said before Tuesday, he hadn’t seen two MABAS activations that close together at the same time “up here.”

“It was a regular occurrence where I was before,” Carani said. “Even two MABAS calls in the same division where you had to try and figure out resources because they’re either on one box alarm or the other.”

He agreed with Gee that dispatchers handled Tuesday’s dual MABAS activations well. 

“That’s what’s nice about this MABAS,” Carani said. “You can look at these cards and see who’s available and who’s not. You fill in and you make it work.”

Brian Jopek may be reached via email at [email protected].