Fire guts apartment building

Wheaton families homeless; lightning suspected in blaze

Photo by Daily Herald Photographer Bev Horne

By James Fuller


Jared Standridge was sitting in his living room with his dog Arwen when he heard a crash of thunder and saw a bright flash followed by a “zapping” sound.

“Then everybody was running around, banging on doors,” Standridge said. “I think everybody got out fine, but I don’t know.”

The immediate aftermath of a fire that consumed a 24-unit apartment building in Wheaton Monday afternoon was confusion and concern.

Some residents toted their dogs and cats around, nuzzling them with a newfound appreciation. Others bawled with the apparent loss of irreplaceable photo albums and other belongings.


Photo by Daily Herald Photographer Bev Horne

The fire began shortly before an alarm went off in the building at about 3:30 p.m. Heavy rain and gusting winds pounded the Amli at Danada Farms apartment complex just before the alarm, leading both fire officials and witnesses to speculate that lightning may be to blame.

“I saw it kind of smoldering and the fire department got there and it was almost like they didn’t have to call anybody else,” said Rick Schweihs, who lives in a neighboring building. “Then all of sudden flames were shooting up.”

Some 30 fire departments and about 100 firefighters responded to the alarm. Smoke and flames began to dissipate an hour into the fight, but the damage was evident. Nearly the entire roof collapsed, leaving only a series of thin strips of the once-vaulted ceilings grasping at the sky like the teeth of a rake.

Residents of the complex said there were no sprinklers in the building, but a fire alarm system was in place that signals the fire department when triggered by smoke or flames.

In the end, fire officials confirmed everyone made it out of the building without injury. By 6:15 p.m., only a few hot spots remained as firefighters walked the interior of the now uninhabitable building.

Red Cross personnel arrived at the scene in the late afternoon to help the newly homeless residents find temporary shelter. Property managers declined comment.

Wheaton Fire Chief Greg Berk said it was too soon to know the cause of the fire for sure, but fire officials were interviewing witnesses who saw lightning just before the blaze erupted. Berk said the Wheaton Fire Department also received several calls about lightning strikes in the area before the Amli fire alarm sounded.

Billy Graham's lifelong 'soul mate' in coma

BY JAMES FULLER
Posted Thursday, June 14, 2007


The story of Ruth and the Rev. Billy Graham began at Wheaton College - the two fell in love reading tombstone epitaphs in a nearby countryside graveyard.

Friends of the Grahams now say they wouldn't be surprised if the couple both soon leave this world as the 86-year-old Ruth lapsed into a coma Wednesday.

And Billy Graham himself seemed to acknowledge that when he said: "Ruth is my soul mate and best friend, and I cannot imagine living a single day without her by my side."

Ruth, 86, has degenerative osteoarthritis of the back and neck and has been bedridden at their home in western North Carolina.

The 88-year-old preacher and adviser to presidents has been in frail health for years, suffering from fluid on the brain, prostate cancer and Parkinson's disease.


Ruth Graham AP Photo

Harold Myra and Marshall Shelley co-authored "The Leadership Secrets of Billy Graham," but they came to know the couple long before. Myra is the retired CEO of Carol Stream-based Christianity Today, a publication Billy Graham founded. Shelley is the editorial vice president.

Both men recalled Ruth Graham as a "spunky," strong-willed woman who never feared telling her husband exactly what she thought. Indeed, Myra recalled in a recent article that the door to the bedridden Ruth Graham's room bears a sign reading, "Nobody knows the trouble I've been."

Shelley said Ruth is the grounding force behind her husband - raising their family on her own much of the time and acting as a counselor for her famous husband.

Myra has personal experience with Ruth Graham's strong will.

"One time she called me about an article that we'd run in the magazine and she started by saying, 'Harold, how could this happen!'" Myra said. "She wasn't intruding, but she wanted us to know her thoughts."

He declined to say what the article was about.

But then there was the time just a couple of years ago when Myra's Wheaton home burned down. Ruth Graham was one of the first to reach out to him with a $100 donation to the rebuilding effort, and a copy of one of her books to begin piecing his personal library back together.

"It was her tremendous concern for the downtrodden, the weak and those who have had trouble," Myra said. "Even when Jim Baker was going through prison and all that, when he was released, she reached out to him and gave him hope for the future."

Myra and Shelley said the days of both Ruth and Billy Graham may be numbered. Both have been in ill health in recent years, and both recently lost siblings.

"Her death would obviously be a very powerful loss," Myra said. "He's been ready to step into glory for a while now. If she dies, she would be there, and I think he's ready to go."

Shelley said Ruth Graham's death would cause the Rev. Graham to grieve, but it would be lessened by the hope of her leaving to be in the presence of Jesus Christ.

"Billy has indicated that he has been ready to meet his maker on any occasion," Shelley said. "He is not afraid to die."