1/30/1888 six buildings were destroyed by fire in New York, NY, one firefighter was killed. The fire started in a store at 549 Broadway, a five-story iron front double building, on the west side between Prince and Spring Streets and extended through Mercer Street in the early morning.
1/30/1902 a Toledo, Ohio firefighter died of injuries received at Henry Rosen’s Junk Warehouse, Vance & 13th.
1/30/1942 a San Francisco, CA firefighter died of the injuries he sustained while operating at the McAllister Auto fire at 1200 Van Ness.
1/30/1958 a New Castle, DE firefighter died from the injuries he sustained after being caught in a chemical explosion.
1/30/2007 Ghent, WV a propane explosion at the Little General Store killed two responders and two propane workers after escaping propane filled the store while attempting to transfer the propane in an outside storage tank that was located under the soffit of the store. “The propane gas service for a local convenience store was being transferred from one provider to another. Service technicians from the new provider were at the store to install the new propane tank, transfer propane from the old tank to the new tank, and establish service for the store. At 1042 hours, firefighters were dispatched to the report of a gas leak at a local convenience store. Firefighters arrived on the scene to find an uncontrollable propane leak. Firefighters reported seeing a billowing cloud of vapor or mist that was striking the eaves of the building and traveling along the ground. An evacuation was begun. An explosion occurred at approximately 1053 hours. Two firefighters, and two gas company employees were killed in the blast. Five other people received serious injuries, including a third firefighter, who succumbed to his injuries May 16th, 2010.”
1/30/2016 a fire destroyed the seven acre 70-year-old, beef cattle auction and stockyard and nearby businesses in Lexington Kentucky. Firefighters were dispatched to the fire around 2:20 pm and quickly called for backup as the skies darkened from the wind-whipped flames.
1/30/2014 Greenville, (western) Kentucky house fire killed nine family members, after an electric baseboard heater ignited some nearby combustibles.
1/30/2013 6:04 p.m. Burlington WI a two-story unprotected ordinary construction, 12,000-square-foot egg processing plant fire resulted in a $40 million loss. The plant had a partial wet-pipe sprinkler system and no automatic detection system. The fire occurred in an area not protected by the sprinkler; the building contained ammonia piping which may have contributed to the fire.
1/30/1978 the 86-year old Loew’s Grand Theater in Atlanta, GA, the site of the 1939 premiere of “Gone with the Wind” was damaged by fire that destroyed most of the top three floors and extended across an alley to several floors of the 12-story Continental Insurance Building next door.
1/30/1959 a fast moving fire at the Glen Ellyn Acres Nursing Home in Glen Ellyn, IL, a suburban Chicago, killed nine of the twenty patients and seven employees in the 65-year old two-story mansion with 19 sleeping rooms and two large recreation halls. Many of the victims became trapped when the roof collapsed.
1/30/1951 Hoquiam, WA a fire at the McClary convalescent home killed twenty-one helpless welfare patients all over 60-years old in a two-story structure with only one interior stairway, after the fire started in the basement clothes drying room and spread rapidly through the wooden building.
1/30/1925 White River Junction, VT an oil heater explosion on the second floor of the Coolidge House started a fire that destroyed 340 room wood-frame hotel with eight stores on the street floor; all of the guests escaped.
1/30/1921 Hoboken, NJ a fire at the Hotel Colonial, 39-41 Newark Street, left twelve dead of the ninety-five occupants in the four-story forty-six guest room structure that except for a few broken windows gave little hint to the tragedy. The fire started in Room 12, occupied by a couple that left the hotel for the evening, and extended to linen room apparently generating a great deal of smoke and toxic gases. The desk clerk rang (called) every room to notify the guests of the fire.
1/30/1912 Sioux City, IA the Mondamin Hotel Block was destroyed by fire; eleven businesses were damaged.
1/30/1898 Maysville, KY the Washington Opera House, Parker’s Livery Stable, and the Mason County Library building were destroyed by fire that also damaged a number of business houses.
1/30/1891 Robert Lee, TX the Coke County Courthouse was destroyed by fire including most of the official records.
1/30/1860 Wilmington, Delaware an incendiary fire destroyed the storehouse of Warner Line of Packets and the adjoining paper warehouse around midnight.