Photo: IAFF Local 333 web site
On May 5, 2005, the Springfield Fire-Rescue Division battled a pair of serious fires.
The first blaze swept an abandoned building on the northern edge of Snyder Park - apparently the former Bullock Garages, according to the Springfield News-Sun.
``It had a pretty good start on us before we got here,” Fire Chief Mike Beers told the newspaper, with firefighters stretching more than 1,000 feet of hose over railroad tracks and through woods to the nearest hydrant.
The second fire gutted a home at 2712 Berger Ave. Amber Griffith and her 4-year-old son escaped - and also saved their cat, according to the News-Sun.