(La Porte County, IN) - It was like a goal line stand but the defensive line consisted of firefighters successful in keeping the football out of the end zone. That’s how police officer Mike Kellems described the work of firefighters in saving homes from the advancing flames of a major brush fire Thursday.
Kellems estimated the brush fire, which burned from late morning until well into the night, was about a half mile wide and close to a mile long. He said the flames, aided by steady southerly winds, were advancing toward Indiana Highway 4 about five miles east of La Porte.
Kellems said firefighters formed a line, consisting of fire trucks and hoses, along the two lane state highway to protect homes on the other side of the road from flames moving in that direction. He said the flames did not cross the highway and the stand is what led to the brush fire getting brought under control and eventually extinguished.
“They literally made a stand. They said it was not going to get past us. They put all of their forces on that highway and stopped it,” Kellems said.
Kellems served as a volunteer firefighter for a
while during his long career with the La Porte County Sheriff’s Office. He retired from the Sheriff's office and is now a Police officer for Purdue University Northwest and does security duties for the U.S. Marshal’s Office.
“It was without a doubt one of the largest field, woodland fires I think I’ve ever seen in my three and a half decades in emergency services,” he said.
