Residents evacuated from apartment fire near downtown Billings

The Billings Fire Department needed extra personnel to help with a blaze near North Park on Tuesday (10/26), according to a post on their Twitter page. Just after 7 pm this evening (Tuesday), a post on @BillingsFire confirmed that crews were on scene at a "working structure fire" that was happening in a small apartment building on the 700 block of North 19th Street. BFD personnel were on the scene "performing fire attack," and according to the tweet, confirmed that residents of the apartment building were being evacuated.
KMHK-FM 103.7 Billings

Related: Tenant taken to hospital following Billings apartment fire

VIDEO: A tenant was injured following an apartment fire on the 700 block of North 19th Street in Billings Tuesday night. Firefighters received the call around 6:50 p.m. after a tenant saw smoke coming from an unoccupied room across the hall, according to Assistant Fire Marshal Bill Tatum. An on-site maintenance worker extinguished the fire with multiple fire extinguishers, and the occupant's cat was rescued from inside, according to Tatum. A neighbor was taken to the hospital. Tatum wrote the tenant possibly suffered from smoke inhalation, while the maintenance worker told Q2 News he believed the tenant was injured after falling. The fire damaged the top of a stove, vent fan and cupboards above the stove and caused smoke and soot damage throughout the rest of the apartment, according to Tatum.
KTVQ-TV CBS Q2 Billings

Trick-or-Treat at Missoula Fire Department stations on Halloween

Have you kicked it around and come up with an idea on how to attack trick-or-treating this Halloween? Did you formulate a master plan on how to gather candy most efficiently? Staying local around the neighborhood? Branching out to hit the bigger developments and apartment complexes? Don't forget about the Candy Crawl at Southgate Mall and free rides when you say "trick-or-treat" at A Carousel for Missoula. There's one more stop that might be pretty fun for the kids. Fire stations around Missoula will be handing out candy on Halloween from 5 PM to 6 PM. I know, it's only one hour, but they do have to focus on other things, like being ready to run out the door in case of an emergency. Don't take my word for it but I would imagine they'll have the fire engines on display, and we all know how awesome fire engines are to younger kids.
KBAZ-FM 96.3 Missoula

Firefighters rescue climber on Mount Helena and a hiker on Mount Ascension

The Helena Fire Department said in a news release that firefighters rescued a stranded climber on Monday on Mount Helena, and an injured hiker on Mount Ascension. At around 10 a.m., firefighters received a report of a person stranded cliff-side on Mount Helena. Crews found a climber with no rope or harness approximately 150 feet off the ground. Helena Fire’s Lt. Matt Welch was lowered to the stranded person and was able to apply a harness to prevent the person from falling. Welch and the climber were lowered to the ground where the person was able to descend under their own power. At the same time, firefighters were dispatched to a stranded hiker on Mount Ascension with a lower extremity injury. Crews found the patient with a probable broken leg needing medical care and assistance to the trailhead.
KRTV CBS 3 Great Falls

Update: Funeral on Friday for Cascade firefighter who died after fighting COVID

PHOTOS: There will be a viewing and service for Ken Lemanski on Friday, October 29. The viewing will be at 1p.m., and the service will be at 2 p.m. Both will be at the LDS church in Cascade (301 4th Avenue NW), with a reception to follow. Everyone is welcome to attend. Lemanski died last week after a battle with COVID.
KXLH-TV CBS 9 Helena

Billings Hanser’s employees renew call for road safety on one-year anniversary of coworkers’ deaths

At all six Hanser's Automotive locations across south central Montana, truck horns rang out at precisely 3 p.m. Monday to mark the one-year anniversary of the deaths two of the company's drivers: Cassie Allen and Nick Visser. “Hopefully people start to take this seriously and start slowing down and moving over. People don’t need to die. People should be able to go do their jobs," said Sara Haworth, dispatch supervisor at Hanser's in Billings. Cassie Allen, 28, of Reed Point and Nick Visser, 37, of Billings were killed last year after a passing motorist struck the men while they were trying to recover a vehicle stuck in a Interstate 90 ditch near Columbus on a snowy day. “I wish he was here to see this. He would tell us not to fuss. He didn’t need all the attention. But I’m thankful for Ralph and the Hanser family for getting this put together, all of the workers that did this. It’s humbling, but it’s still sad," said Kendra Visser, Nick's widow.
KTVQ-TV CBS 2 Billings

Western Montana wildfire season not over yet

Despite the wet, cool weather, fire officials in Missoula County say the fire season is not over with. The Missoula County Fire Protection Association (MCFPA) reports there were eight human-caused wildfires in the county over the past week because of abandoned campfires, illegal debris burning, and careless sparks. They say firefighters have been working long hours, running from one side of the county to the other because of human carelessness. The fire danger in the Missoula area remains at "Moderate" despite the chilly mornings and periods of rain or snow. Additionally, the area is still under severe drought and the precipitation received so far has not been widespread. Missoula County has experienced 185 wildfires this year, with nearly 70% of those caused by humans, according to a news release.
KPAX-TV CBS/CW+ 8 Missoula