October 22, 2022 was supposed to be a relatively quiet one. The two things on our docket for the day was the University of Missouri's homecoming parade in the morning followed by the Homecoming football game in the late afternoon. And if you know anything about being in the new industry is that you should always expect the unexpected to happen.
Around 2:30 p.m. there were reports of two small fires in Columbia. A reporter was sent, but not a photographer because they were very small fires that did very little to no damage. Then on the police and fire scanner a call went out about a bigger fire 25 miles West of Columbia in a town called Wooldridge. The town has roughly a population of 30 people.
I had never been in the newsroom when something like this happened. But the visuals team and I sprung into actions. First sending a call out to all photographers and seeing who would be able to hop in a car and head over. Equipped with cameras and camcorders eight visual journalist headed out to see what was going on in this small town.
As they arrived on the scene, they communicated back with those of us left in the newsroom about what they saw. I set up a google drive folder that they could dump their photos in from the field. That way we would have access to start publishing these photos along with the article that was being written.
As the night went on we received more and more photos depicting what was going on in Wooldridge. And as night turned to morning we finally got photos of the damage the fire did to the town and all those who call it home.
The next afternoon, a fellow photo editor Michelle Gutierrez, and I started going through all the photos that were taken during Saturday night, Sunday morning and afternoon. We wanted to make sure we showed the whole story. And we knew we needed to include not only the fire and the damage, but also show the faces of the people effected. This photo gallery is the result
Photography by Margo Wagner, Owen Ziliak, Clayton Steward, Maya Bell, Caroline McCone and Sam Koeppel
Check out the various stories the Columbia Missourian wrote about the fire and what comes next for the town:
Firefighters attempt to put out a fire Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Firefighters on the scene estimated 15 to 20 houses were lost to the fire.
Maya Bell/Columbia Missourian
Della Miller, 6, plays with her toys Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 while her parents watch the smoke from the fire north of Wooldridge, Mo. Della celebrated her sixth birthday on Friday.
Maya Bell/Columbia Missourian
V J Young carries a case of water into Cooper County Fire Protection District Station 3 on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. The station was a place for firefighters to return to for food, water and rest.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Jamestown firefighters fill a water tank on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 on Main Street in Wooldridge, Mo. Missouri Farm Association tankers carried water across the county to firefighters working the surrounding area.
Caroline McCone/Columbia Missourian
A John Deere combine sits ablaze in a field on Saturday Oct. 22 in Wooldridge, Mo. Multiple sources confirmed this combine fire was the start of the blaze that would burn 3,000 to 3,500 acres in the Cooper County area.
Clayton Steward/Columbia Missourian
A sign reading “Welcome to Wooldridge” lays in a burnt field on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
Trace Brandes cuts an electrical wire that had fallen on an elevated line on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. The fire caused multiple elevated wires to collapse.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
LEFT: The inside of the Wooldridge Baptist Church is filled with light right before community members boarded it up on Sunday in the afternoon. Several items were removed from the church during and right after the fire including stained glass, bibles, a tapestry, flowers and chairs. RIGHT: Bibles are stacked on a table outside of the the Wooldridge Baptist Church after they were removed by community members on Sunday in Wooldridge, Mo.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Clint Zimmerschied rides his horse, Turtle, after successfully lassoing Ready, a pony that had escaped during the fire on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Zimmerschied was called in from Boonville to help return the pony to safety.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
LEFT: From left, Gail Bruce, Jesse Bowers and Tracy Friderich look at an aerial image of the village on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. The fire “burned almost ¾ of the village,” said a law enforcement officer. RIGHT: Gail Bruce holds a picture of the burned village on Sunday in Wooldridge. A drone pilot took a picture from above the village to help residents and first responders better assess the situation.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
Smoke billows up over a barn and fields north east of Wooldridge on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022. Smoke was coming from back burns set by the Cooper County Fire Department in an attempt to burn off the fuel in the area in case the fire was to extend further.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Tracy Friderich walks through the charred remnants of the front of Wooldridge Baptist Church on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. The altar of the church was moved the day before.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
The Baker family watches from across the street on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Shleby Baker, not pictured, was attempting to lasso his father’s pony, Ready, which had escaped during the fire.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
The remains of a home destroyed by the Wooldridge fire smolder on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Structures throughout downtown were reduced to ruins by the fire, sparing only the village post office and community center.
Sam Koeppel/Columbia Missourian
A gun sits in charred remains in the trunk of a burnt car on Sunday in the afternoon. The car belonged to a man called “Mr. Daniel” according to Joey Belt and Zach Perkins who used to buy scrap material from him. He lived in a silo on the edge of the property which burned down in the fire.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Jessica McComb cries in the remains of her home on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. McComb, her husband, Emmanuel, and children, Malachi, 13, Titus, 9 and Amira, 7, have lived in Wooldridge for 18 months.
Sam Koeppel/Columbia Missourian
Amira McComb, 7, left, and Titus McComb, 9, sit nearby their burned house on Sunday in Wooldridge, Mo. The children’s dog, Olaf, and two of their birds died in the fire because their cages were not opened. Their parents had just spent 35,000 redoing the house and were going to put new siding on it as the last renovation.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Burned ground is left after the Wooldridge fire north east of the town on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Farmers turned on their irrigation systems to help dampen the spread of the fire but still burned an estimated 3,000 to 3,500 acres.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Firefighters attempt to put out a fire Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Firefighters on the scene estimated 15 to 20 houses were lost to the fire.
Maya Bell/Columbia Missourian
Della Miller, 6, plays with her toys Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 while her parents watch the smoke from the fire north of Wooldridge, Mo. Della celebrated her sixth birthday on Friday.
Maya Bell/Columbia Missourian
V J Young carries a case of water into Cooper County Fire Protection District Station 3 on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. The station was a place for firefighters to return to for food, water and rest.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Jamestown firefighters fill a water tank on Saturday, Oct. 22, 2022 on Main Street in Wooldridge, Mo. Missouri Farm Association tankers carried water across the county to firefighters working the surrounding area.
Caroline McCone/Columbia Missourian
A John Deere combine sits ablaze in a field on Saturday Oct. 22 in Wooldridge, Mo. Multiple sources confirmed this combine fire was the start of the blaze that would burn 3,000 to 3,500 acres in the Cooper County area.
Clayton Steward/Columbia Missourian
A sign reading “Welcome to Wooldridge” lays in a burnt field on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
Trace Brandes cuts an electrical wire that had fallen on an elevated line on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. The fire caused multiple elevated wires to collapse.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
LEFT: The inside of the Wooldridge Baptist Church is filled with light right before community members boarded it up on Sunday in the afternoon. Several items were removed from the church during and right after the fire including stained glass, bibles, a tapestry, flowers and chairs. RIGHT: Bibles are stacked on a table outside of the the Wooldridge Baptist Church after they were removed by community members on Sunday in Wooldridge, Mo.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Clint Zimmerschied rides his horse, Turtle, after successfully lassoing Ready, a pony that had escaped during the fire on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Zimmerschied was called in from Boonville to help return the pony to safety.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
LEFT: From left, Gail Bruce, Jesse Bowers and Tracy Friderich look at an aerial image of the village on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. The fire “burned almost ¾ of the village,” said a law enforcement officer. RIGHT: Gail Bruce holds a picture of the burned village on Sunday in Wooldridge. A drone pilot took a picture from above the village to help residents and first responders better assess the situation.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
Smoke billows up over a barn and fields north east of Wooldridge on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022. Smoke was coming from back burns set by the Cooper County Fire Department in an attempt to burn off the fuel in the area in case the fire was to extend further.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Tracy Friderich walks through the charred remnants of the front of Wooldridge Baptist Church on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. The altar of the church was moved the day before.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
The Baker family watches from across the street on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Shleby Baker, not pictured, was attempting to lasso his father’s pony, Ready, which had escaped during the fire.
Owen Ziliak/Columbia Missourian
The remains of a home destroyed by the Wooldridge fire smolder on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Structures throughout downtown were reduced to ruins by the fire, sparing only the village post office and community center.
Sam Koeppel/Columbia Missourian
A gun sits in charred remains in the trunk of a burnt car on Sunday in the afternoon. The car belonged to a man called “Mr. Daniel” according to Joey Belt and Zach Perkins who used to buy scrap material from him. He lived in a silo on the edge of the property which burned down in the fire.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Jessica McComb cries in the remains of her home on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. McComb, her husband, Emmanuel, and children, Malachi, 13, Titus, 9 and Amira, 7, have lived in Wooldridge for 18 months.
Sam Koeppel/Columbia Missourian
Amira McComb, 7, left, and Titus McComb, 9, sit nearby their burned house on Sunday in Wooldridge, Mo. The children’s dog, Olaf, and two of their birds died in the fire because their cages were not opened. Their parents had just spent 35,000 redoing the house and were going to put new siding on it as the last renovation.
Margo Wagner/Columbia Missourian
Burned ground is left after the Wooldridge fire north east of the town on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022 in Wooldridge, Mo. Farmers turned on their irrigation systems to help dampen the spread of the fire but still burned an estimated 3,000 to 3,500 acres.