My family has a history of "fire buffing." Basically, we listen to the scanner and respond to fires and take photographs. The photos have been used in textbooks and investigations.
Dad and Michael responded early this morning to the Greenville hotel fire in which 6 people perished, along with a dozen other people injured. Michael and Dad apparently were the only ones on the scene shooting still images.
To make a long story short, Michael sold some images to The State newspaper in Columbia, S.C. and some to the Associated Press.
The AP photos can be seen on Yahoo News. We have to wait until Monday morning to see what placement Michael's images get in The State, but odds are it will be prominent, I'd say.
Michael says, "I recognize that the pictures are not particularly noteworthy. ... They are simply pictures of what became a big news event." Nothing like being at the right place at the right time.
The story was on CNN and Fox News this morning. Online newsites around the country are carrying the story, too. Now we're waiting to see if we can find the photos in papers around the country...
The fun thing is that the local paper, The Greenville News, has turned down Michael in the past, and they've not been too polite about it. They did so again today, when all they have is images of the scene several hours later.
I'd say Michael has paid his dues. It's not his first early-morning, cold, rainy fire.
Congratulations to the kid bro'!
Respond to this post if you see the images in your papers.
Posted by JRC at January 25, 2004 11:08 PM