Chapter 7: The Great Fire

And there was a second explosion to be heard. One more building was destroyed by the great size of the flames, forcing more people to come out of their homes.

The firetrucks cannot handle the explosions, as the force is too small. However, the mayor has contacted the mayors of neighboring cities, asking their help to extinguish the fire.

It was a busy day for Doc and his colleagues, as they weren’t only admitting cases of the virus, they also admitted all other sorts of cases. Burns, trauma, and faint spells; name it. And it was getting harder to admit more, as the hospital was running out of space to treat the patients.

The great fire lasted for hours, and there were two or three more explosions heard. All the citizens had already evacuated to the mayor’s house, where they were separated by tents, one for each family.

And finally, with the help of the other cities’ forces, the fire died down. But it destroyed three buildings and seriously damaged another one; costing millions in damage. The hospital was almost full of wounded patients, and the fire left around 100 dead and 10 more missing. Lastly, almost all of the city’s food supply was in that ship, leaving Wellsworth in hard times.

“Mommy, mommy,” Doc heard someone running to the mayor’s house’s door as she saw her mom. Turns out, she was one of those missing, and everyone was relieved when that missing life was found.

That evening, the mayor declared a state of calamity for Wellsworth, prompting aid from neighboring cities so as to extend their food supply.

“Today will be remembered as one of the, if not, the darkest day for the city,” the mayor said as she declared a state of calamity. “Our citizens have been displaced, and supplies were cut short,” she continued.

“Here am I, representing the citizens of Wellsworth, asking for your help. It will go through a long way; for us to survive this fire, and ultimately, this pandemic,” she ended her speech.

And in less than 24 hours later, news of aid was received of the mayor, who was very grateful for the fortunate response of neighboring cities.

Doc’s shift ended that night, and he crossed the road to the mayor’s house; he can’t get back to his home yet. After a lengthy session of sanitation, he finally saw Bryan and his wife after many days. “Oh, it’s good to see you all safe and sound,” said Doc as the family had finally been reunited.

The fire really struck at the worst time. Now, it is even harder to practice health protocols, as supplies were short and the space where the citizens lived was smaller.

There were still 8 more lives missing, and Doc wondered if those lives were already with the ashes the fire left in the city.

Also, burnt down with the ship were the test kits that would have helped make progress in this epidemic.