At 87, retired Lexington Fire Major Orville Cook leafed through a scrapbook of newspaper clippings Sunday, reminiscing about his work on dramatic fires and rescues and when the city’s Station 6 “was at the center of everything.”
The fire station at 501 South Limestone Street had its centennial celebration Sunday. “This is where it all happened,” Cook said.
When he joined the department in 1957, it was Lexington’s firefighter training center. A few years later during the Cuban Missile Crisis, the public showed up there to learn what to do in case of an attack, said Cook. “We had people lined up until 1 and 2 o’clock in the morning having classes for several weeks.”