FIRE!

You would think that using Kerosene stoves and coal heaters in houses made out of wood and paper would be a bit like building Nuclear power plants in a country prone to Earthquakes and Tsunamis. You would be right.

At the end of winter when Shibukawa is at it’s driest, windiest and still cold enough to warrant a heater there are always fires.

I happened to be walking home from a drinking party one night when I caught a whiff of smoke on the air. The smoke became visible and I realized it was close to where I happened to be heading. The city's PA announcment system rang out warning that a fire had started around the NTT (telephone provider) building. That was a block away from me and I had my camera. I thought, “HELLS YES I AM GOING TO TAKE PHOTOS OF THE NTT BUILDING GOING UP!!! Maybe I could even get my pics published in the paper if I am the first on the scene.”

As it turned out the NTT Building was fine but rather a house behind it was aflame. When I got within sight of the place the fire department was struggling to get it under control. Though we could see only a little flame, it was clearly a large blaze that was raging inside the house.

After a few minutes it appeared that there were still people trapped inside. The Shibukawa fire department was quick and entered the house as quickly as they safely could.

They established a cordon and pushed us spectators back a bit so they could battle the still raging fire and shield us from possibly viewing anyone they rescued from the building.

At this point I was starting to take strain from the cold and was tired of breathing in the toxic fumes so I headed home. In the end I didn’t see if anyone was inside or not but I was thoroughly impressed with the efficiency and tenacity of the Shibukawa Fire department. They did their jobs well. and did what they could in light of this small disaster.

Respect.