No students displaced after fire in ISU dorms

No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Normal Fire Department and Illinois State University. (Photo courtesy Normal Fire Department)

By WMBD-TV

NORMAL – The Normal Fire Department stated that no injuries were reported after a fire at Watterson Towers on the Illinois State University’s campus on Wednesday.

According to the Normal Fire Department, a staff workroom on the second floor of the south tower caught fire, which caused moderate damage to the immediate area.

Fire crews initially responded at 4:21 p.m. after the fire alarm activated. When crews arrived on the scene, they found an activated fire sprinkler in a staff workroom connected to the fitness center.

Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire, then started searching for hot spots and ventilating the building. The fire and smoke damage was contained to the workroom, but water damage spread throughout the second floor.

The second floor is non-residential, so no students were displaced.

Fire crews remained on the scene for about two hours. The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Normal Fire Department and Illinois State University.

Blogs

Labor Day – Expanding voting rights for all

By Mike Matejka Because of COVID, there is no Labor Day Parade this year.  It’s always a great event for our everyday workers to march proudly down the street and enjoys the festive crowd. If there had been a parade, this year’s Labor Day theme was to be “150 years of struggle: your right to vote.” …

Is federal mobilization the answer?

By Mike Matejka As President Donald Trump threatens to send federal marshals into Chicago, over the objections of Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, recall another Illinois Governor who protested the incursion of armed federal personnel into the city.   Those federal troops, rather than calming, escalated the situation, leading to deaths and violence. Illinois poet Vachel Lindsay…

In these troubled times, to my fellow white Americans

By Mike Matejka Our nation is at a unique watershed in human relations. African-Americans have been killed too many times in the past before George Floyd, but the response to this man’s death is international and all-encompassing. I was a grade-schooler during the Civil Rights 1960s. I watched Birmingham demonstrators hosed and the Selma – Montgomery…

Workers’ Memorial Day – Remember those whose job took their life

Looking around our community, when we say employer, most will respond to State Farm, Country, or Illinois State University.   We too often forget those who are building our roads, serving our food, or our public employees. COVID-19 has made us more aware of the risk.  Going to work every day for some people means…