Morning all. The coffee is brewing and the heater is on because the temperature drippied in the night. which is actually very good for the garlic I just planted in the back bed, not so fabulous for my little toes. I really need to take my thick and fuzzy socks back out. Last weekend I changed my clothes over for spring and summer. I’m pretty sure that’s what caused the frost. Sorry about that. Nevertheless we push on with our morning prompt. Everyone ready? Excellent!
I’m not entirely certain why I decided I needed a fire in a fireworks factory, but apparently that is what today called for. Not quite certain what I’d ever do with it, but at least I have it should any story I write ever involve a fireworks factory. Which it might, you never know.
Thursday, April 22nd: The effects were quite dramatic.
The effects were quite dramatic. Rockets flared into the sky bursting with rainbow colors. Sparks flew like giant blooming flowers of light in the skin and things that let of trails of smoke and screaming whistles flew into the night only to explode with a loud pop.
There were other things snaking across the ground, hissing before the explosion and then of course there were the items that never left the building.
The fire trucks managed to extinguish most of the fire, however due to the placement of the road the sections they extinguished first were the administrative buildings. The various warehouses were hard to reach and at first no one thought that the fire reached them. Efforts were concentrated on the factory floor where the raw elements for the fireworks were stored. It was only when the explosions started, the colorful light displays showing first through the windows and later escaping into the night that it was understood that the fire had indeed leapt from the main building despite the efforts of the fire brigade.
Given the nature of the explosion and the difficult terrain, the chief had his people concentrate on the surrounding areas. They doused everything with water in the hopes that none of the fire would spread to the woods and then to the surrounding countryside. The factory and warehouses were located far enough outside of town to not be a threat to any person nearby. It was mostly open fields and forests that were at risk. People from the State park bordering the open land came to assist, following trails of light with their eyes and dashing off to follow with small fire extinguishers. They could move faster than the firemen with their heavy gear and hoses and danced through the woods like wild things leaving white foam in their wake. What attention could be given to the warehouses was given. Arcs of water from well-aimed hoses flew through the windows.
Gradually the display ended. Whether it was due to water dousing the fires or simply the end of the firework supply. The silence made everyone feel deaf. There was sno screaming f rockets and no explosions. Slowly people, professionals and volunteers alike, trudged out of the words. There was a universally dazed look to them all. Everyone was streaked with dirt. Many people had bare skin crisscrossed with welts from snapping tree limbs. As they returned to the parking lot, coffee was dispensed from large urns brought over from the nearest church and dispensed by the minister and his wife, both still in their pajamas and robes. They looked like the survivors of some cataclysmic event rather than fighters of the blaze.
For the volunteers it was over. For the professionals it was a short respite while careful ears listened to see If the explosions had indeed stopped. Each building would need to be investigated to be certain the night’s work was done.
Ten til Midnight 