‘Don’t remember anything like that’: Captain recaps consecutive Champaign apartment fires

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) — Firefighters were put to the test Monday to Tuesday morning, battling two apartment complex fires.

The first one started just before midnight near Columbia Avenue and Fifth Street. The second was three hours later by John Street and Crescent Drive. Champaign firefighters train for everything, and when the two apartment buildings caught fire, they jumped into action.

Captain Jason Dillingham said the day started like any other.

“Normal day. Training, education, some other training,” he said.

Then, right before midnight, firefighters got a call about a fire that started near the roof of a single-story apartment complex. They went on the defense and brought in ladders to fight it from above.

“We come back, we’re still putting equipment back together, still washing things. We’re still cleaning things, still filling air bottles, getting the truck maintenance done,” Dillingham said. “During all the operational readiness, we get dispatched for another working structure fire.”

It was another call at another apartment complex. Dillingham said in his 23 years fighting fires, he can’t remember a scenario like Tuesday morning.

“We’ve had two structure fires during the same shift,” he said. “It was just ironic that we were physically still cleaning and putting things away. The working fire response goes off, and off we go. And I just don’t remember anything like that.”

Dillingham said the circumstances of the two fires may have been rare, but they’re trained to help people every day.

“The events of last night — they’re mitigated, they’re over, and we move on to the next one,” he said. “We’re ready to serve the citizens at any point, any time. The equipment’s back together, some of the crews are refreshed, some are still here. Some of those crews are me.”

There were no injuries in either fire. Firefighters said the first fire was caused by an electrical shortage. The second remains under investigation.

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