TULSA, Okla — After a large house fire, all that was left is a charred pile of rubble.
Vehicles, boats, and almost everything else that was here before is now buried under a layer of ash.
The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory that is in effect until August 15th at 8:00 p.m.
Firefighters from Berryhill, Sapulpa, and Sand Springs all responded to help combat the blaze Sunday afternoon.
Berryhill Fire Chief, Michael Hall, said before firefighters can even get near the flames, their body temperatures are already well above normal.
“We start off at 98.6 to begin with and then we put on our bunker gear and that adds probably 6 or 7 degrees by itself. And then because we’ve got 93-94 degree temperature plus humidity, it’s probably 110, 125 inside that gear pretty quick", Chief Hall said.
Chief Hall said when fighting fires in extreme heat, it's important to monitor every single person responding to the scene.
He said firefighters are expected to stay in shape to be physically fit enough for the job.
The extreme conditions they are exposed to require them to go through lots of training.
Chief Hall said they use air bottles while fighting the flames, which means after thirty minutes each firefighter will come out, get a new air bottle, and must talk to other firefighters on the scene to make sure they are responding appropriately and aren't putting their health at risk.
The cause of the fire is still being investigated, but Chief Hall said once a structure has been more than fifty percent engulfed before anyone arrives it becomes a lot more difficult to determine the initial cause.
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