Fire department practices fighting house fires on Main Street

Members of the Cape Girardeau Fire Department trained with live burns of two houses in the 800 block of Main Street just before 2 p.m. Thursday. The firefighters undergo live burn training a few times a year, fire chief Rick Ennis said. He said the training was held to time how long it takes a smoke detector and sprinklers to activate once a fire is ignited as well as determine the department's response time. The fire in the first abandoned home was controlled with one sprinkler, while crews fought a fire in the second residence for about 30 minutes. A typical house fire, Ennis said, requires the response of all Cape Girardeau's on-duty firefighting personnel. Crews will continue training today, and the two houses used are expected to be taken down by next week, according to Cape Girardeau Mayor Jay Knudtson, who was present at the training Thursday. Look for more photos from the fire in the March 7 Focus feature.