New Carlisle, IN Asst. Chief Jamie Middlebrook killed in structural collapse at fire
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A veteran New Carlisle (LaPorte County) firefighter was killed and another injured after the roof of a business that was on fire partially collapsed.According to a report from WSBT-TV, Assistant Chief Jamie Middlebrook was trapped and killed in the blaze at K-Fex Inc., 5885 N. 800 E, just west of the St. Joseph-LaPorte county line.
LaPorte County Sheriff Michael Mollenhauer told the station one firefighter was pulled following the partial roof collapse but that crews couldn’t find Middlebrook. Firefighters had to remove vehicles
from inside the building to get to his body, according to the station’s report.
Above is video of an explosion at the fire where Chief Middlebrook was killed. Click here is video fails to play.
The blaze broke out around 9 p.m. local time near U.S. 20 and 800 East. Multiple agencies from several counties responded to the fire at K-Fex, a septic pumping business. The address is listed as New Carlisle but technically this is in LaPorte County.Two large explosions occurred just before 10:30 pm.One of the major issues crews faced was accessing a reliable water supply. There were no fire hydrants at the scene and water was being transported in large tankers, before the fire was finally brought under control Wednesday morning.
