Fire!

I was woken up this morning by a phone call at 4:00 am. My brother in law was calling to say that he heard on his scanner that there was a fire on my street. He named the house number, and I said, "Oh, that's across the street," meaning that because it was an even number, it was on the other side of our street. I groggily said goodbye and hung up. I looked out my window, and it was the house directly across the street! There was an orange glow coming from the roof, but I didn't see any flames.

Very soon after I woke up, a bunch of firetrucks showed up. They worked very quickly, banging on the doors of neighboring houses, trying to get people up and out of their homes. Luckily, no one was living in the house at the time. We watched as they kicked the doors in (this was a double home, so it was like two houses sharing a wall in the middle) and smashed out windows with axes. It was creepy to see them standing on the roof, especially when there were 10-foot high flames.

The whole neighborhood (or at least, just my street) was awake at 4:00 am, and we were all outside watching the scene. There must have been at least 50 firefighters, and at least four firetrucks. The fire was out by 6:00, but of course they stuck around to keep an eye on the house. I was an hour late for work because the firetruck was blocking my driveway.

Thank God no one was hurt! It seems as if the fire started in the attic. The houses are pretty much destroyed. They didn't burn to the ground, but I think there's a lot of damage. I can see through the front window and right out the back of the house.

I have a funny taste in my mouth all day, probably from breathing in smoke. My hubby said his stomach didn't feel good this morning. Our water was brown this morning, but it seems clear now. I'm not sure if I should wash my dishes yet, though.

Work was interesting. It was the first day of the semester, so I knew that it was going to be crazy. I got a cup of coffee before work, hoping that it would be enough to keep me going all day. I didn't go to the gym, and I feel bad about that, but I just felt too tired. I didn't want to phone it in at the gym. When I work out, I want it to be worth it. Don't worry, I'll work hard tomorrow.

I took some pictures of the fire: