Mehlville Fire Protection District Chief Jim Silvernail last week praised the efforts of district firefighters and paramedics in responding to two recent incidents.

District personnel responded early Dec. 9 to a report of a vehicle that drove into the garage of a residence in the 4700 block of Towne Centre Drive.

Shortly afterward, firefighters and paramedics responded to a house fire in the 4700 block of Brunston Drive.

Fire district officials said the driver of a pickup truck lost control of the vehicle and caromed off two parked cars before plunging through the garage door at 4758 Towne Centre. The impact forced the vehicle in-side halfway through the garage’s back wall.

The accident affected the building’s structural integrity, according to fire district officials.

“… It was a pretty serious call. A car went through there. Nobody was injured very badly, but they had a problem there,” Silvernail said during a Board of Directors meeting that took place Dec. 13.

“… Right after that, we got a report of a first alarm on Brunston, which is right off of Kerth (Road), and they responded as a first alarm,” the chief said. “Deputy Chief (Dave) Waser was the first officer on the scene, and they had a single-story ranch structure with a heavy fire in the bedroom and hallway.”

Seven people were in the house at 4703 Brunston Drive at the time of the fire, he said.

“Five got out. Two were still inside, and the fellows made two successful rescues and brought those patients out,” Silvernail said. “Dave struck a second alarm. The fire itself was probably not a second-alarm fire, but when you have two people coming out and you’ve got five people working on each of them, you’re going to have to restock your resources.

“So he struck a second alarm on the call, which brought in Affton, Springdale and Rock Community, along with another one of our units. And that fire was put under control shortly after that, and the cause of the fire was discarded smoking material. But they did a tremendous job on this call …”

The chief praised the efforts of firefighters and paramedics who responded to the fire.

“… It’s not every day you make rescues, and there’s two people in this fire district that are living …” as a result of the quick response by district personnel, Silvernail said.