The fire at Bolin Ford, a Bristow landmark on Main Street, started about 1 p.m. and drew about 60 firefighters — 19 from Bristow and 40 from Stroud, Sapulpa, Depew and Beggs, Bristow Fire Chief Bob Grant said.
Bristow Assistant Fire Chief Chuck Conkling and Bristow firefighter Jeff Winn were injured when an awning collapsed on them. Winn was trapped beneath the rubble for about three minutes and suffered injuries to his torso, but is expected to recover fully. Conkling’s neck was injured, but he was treated at a local hospital and released Thursday, Grant said.
The cause of the fire has not been determined and a damage estimate has not been made, Grant said. The state fire marshal’s office is investigating.
Resident Pamela Bridgeman and her son Jamie, 16, were at a nearby grocery store when the building’s fire started.
"There was a lot of window explosions. The fire was massive. A lot of flames, a lot of black smoke, and it sounded like some cars inside probably blowing up,” she said.
Students at nearby Edison Elementary School were evacuated as a precaution, and a Christmas parade scheduled Thursday night was called off.
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