Crippled Garrison Fire Department battles a fire at storm damaged house

GARRISON - After storms swept through Garrison on Monday, an already crippled fire department had to get back to work early Tuesday morning.

Fire fighters responded to a house fire around 5:00 a.m. on the 300 block of Cedar Street. The fire chief says it started after the homeowner lit candles because much of the city is without power.

“Yesterday, I had a tree fall on my house.  This morning, I had a fire in my house,” said fire victim David Murray. “I fell asleep on the couch, and when I woke up, I was coughing and gagging. I had a smoke line about five feet up,” said Murray.

Murray's home was destroyed by smoke and fire damage.  But he says it's not a total loss.

“It was just me and my animals and I think I got everybody out,” said Murray.

Luckily, the fire department was able to salvage enough equipment to hold off flames until four neighboring departments arrived to lend a hand. On Monday, the storm flattened the Garrison fire station and caused thousands of dollars in damage.

“We all went to bed knowing we could mount an attack in the morning,”  said Garrison Fire Chief Steve Meyer. “We were ready to respond.”

And the fire crew didn't hesitate to bring out their trucks – whether they were beat up or not.

“We have lost a lot of our equipment. Some of our fire fighters' gear we cannot find.  It was obviously blown away,” said Meyer.

Limited equipment, but full manpower and will power to get the job done.

“We might not have been 100 percent, but we were able to respond,” said Meyer.

Chief Meyer estimates the damage at the fire station to about $300,000.  They're currently storing their trucks and gear at a farmer's machine shed.

[nggallery id=566]