A mid-afternoon fire consumed a Delaware Township home Saturday afternoon. Nobody was home at the time of the blaze.
The fire, estimated by Pennsylvania State Police Fire Marshal Steve Kaneski and Delaware Township Fire Chief Jeff Graber to be caused by an electrical malfunction, began in a bedroom and engulfed the roofline by the time fire crews arrived to battle it around 4:30 p.m.
Kaneski, who investigated the remains of the Sproul Road house Sunday, said he concurred with Graber’s assessment that the fire was likely caused by an electrical short, though when he was interviewed Monday, he said they had yet to pinpoint exactly which device was at fault.
“It was essentially a room and contents fire,” Kaneski said, “But it got to the roofline, and made it an almost total loss.”
Matamoras firefighters work from the platform of their ladder truck to extinguish the Sunday night blaze. (Photo by Jim Davis)
Firefighters look on as crews work to extinguish the blaze. (Photo by Jim Davis)
By Jim Davis
MATAMORAS — Fire gutted a Matamoras home on Sunday evening. Shortly after 10 p.m., the call came in and units from Matamoras, Westfall, Port Jervis, Sparrowbush, and Hemlock Farms responded to the blaze at 103 Avenue K.
Firefighters battled the blaze for several hours, and by 1:30 a.m. several units were still on scene conducting overhaul operations.
According to several emergency workers at the scene, there was no one in the structure at the time of the fire.
PORT JERVIS —Firefighters from Sparrowbush, Port Jervis and multiple area fire companies battled a stubborn New Year’s Eve blaze at a residential property in front of Tri-State Transmission, on Route 97/Route 42 just outside of Port Jervis.
The fire, which was easily visible from the Pennsylvania side of the Delaware River, shut down the highway and gutted the house. Although the initial call that came in to Port Jervis firefighters suggested that someone was trapped in the building, that was not the case, and no one was injured in the blaze, which started shortly after 3 p.m.
At one point, three horn blasts sounded, prompting all trucks present to begin blaring their sirens, an emergency signal to all firefighters in the structure to immediately get out. According to unconfirmed reports, there was a fuel tank in the building that was in danger of rupturing, though that didn’t happen, and firefighters quickly returned to battling the blaze.
By 6:30 p.m., the fire was smoldering, with occasional minor flareups, and was largely under control.
From left to right, the vacant Great American/K-Mart store, Dollar General, and Rite Aid stores sustained smoke and water damage but were spared from further loss by a quick save by local firefighters who responded quickly to the scene of a December 10th fire in the rear of Dollar General. (Photo by Sharon Siegel)
Port Jervis Fire Department’s Howard Wheat Engine Co. No. 4 was among the units called to assist at December 10th fire in a Port Jervis strip mall in which firefighters are being credited with a quick save which kept damage at a minimum. (Photo by Sharon Siegel)
By Sharon E. Siegel
PORT JERVIS — A particularly smoky December 10th fire in Port Jervis’ McArthur Circle strip mall could have caused much more damage had it not been for a quick save on the part of local firefighters who responded immediately and took quick action to prevent flames from spreading.
Port Jervis Fire Department (PJFD) Chief Joseph Kowal and Orange County Deputy Fire Coordinator/Past PJFD Chief James Rohner were first on the scene of the fire which originated in the rear of a store located in the middle of the 100 Pike Street mall. The fire was called in to 9-1-1 at approximately 1:05 p.m. by a pharmacist in the adjoining Rite Aid store.
As the two longtime firefighters waited for other responders to arrive momentarily, they quickly evacuated the building, ran to the rear of a very smoky Dollar General, opened a storage area door, and were able to immediately identify the seat of the fire.
“We were met with heavy black smoke,” said Kowal. “I grabbed an extinguisher that was on the wall and discharged it on the base of the fire, which was rolling up the roof of the structure. The extinguisher was able to effectively knock down the bulk of the fire.”
Meanwhile, multiple PJFD units had quickly arrived on scene. Delaware Engine Co. No. 2 was able to stretch a 1 ¾ inch line through the front door, and a line from Howard Wheat Engine Co. No. 4 was stretched through the back door. Other PJ units surrounded the mall for assistance.
While the fire was quickly extinguished, units remained on the scene until 6:30 to remove water and to ventilate large volumes of smoke in Dollar General, Rite Aid, and adjoining, vacant old Great American/K-Mart store. Kowal attributed the large amount of smoke to plastic furniture and storage containers smoldering inside the Dollar General store.
The cause of the fire, which originated in the office/kitchen area of Dollar General, is under investigation.
Units called in to assist on scene with smoke removal were Sparrowbush and Matamoras Fire Departments. Departments called for standby were Huguenot, Montague and Otisville.
Smoke billows from the windows of Rite Aid and Family Dollar stores as units arrive on the scene of December 10th fire in downtown Port Jervis. (Photo by Sharon Siegel)
The interior of Family Dollar is ventilated following a fire which originated in a kitchen/office area in the rear of the store. (Photo by Sharon Siegel)
PORT JERVIS — Approximately ten Port Jervis residents were displaced by a fire that occurred in a Pike Street apartment building at the height of last weekend’s particularly treacherous Sunday afternoon ice storm. The upper Pike Street fire was one of three calls responded to by Port Jervis Fire Department volunteers during the icy afternoon, an afternoon in which one PJFD volunteer required transport to the hospital.
The Pike Street fire was reported by a tenant in the three-story 190 Pike Street building at approximately 1:10 p.m. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire, which originated in a second floor rear apartment, but then spent additional time securing the rest of the building.
“A tenant was thawing pipes with a torch and caught a wall in the rear hallway/bathroom area on fire,” said PJFD Chief Joe Kowal. “We got the fire out quickly, but we remained in the building to check other areas to make sure the fire had not extended past this wall.”
The fire caused electrical and plumbing concerns, including broken pipes, which required the power to be shut off to the building. The Red Cross was called to assist displaced tenants who occupied multiple apartments in the building.
A PJFD firefighter was injured outside of the building when he slipped on ice and a compartment door on his company’s fire apparatus came down on his head. He was transported to Bon Secours Community Hospital where he was treated for a laceration to the head and released.
Port Jervis and Matamoras Fire Departments spent approximately two hours on scene. Sparrowbush, Huguenot, and Greenville Fire Departments were called for standby.
The other two Sunday calls brought firefighters to the scenes but required no further action. One call was for a broken pipe at the Port Jervis High School. The other was a heat-related concern at the Deerpark Reformed Church.
LORDS VALLEY – A quick response by firefighters and emergency personnel is being credited with saving a Hemlock Farms home.
The fire started around supper time on a rainy Wednesday evening, December 2, in an occupied dwelling at 800 Rimrock Lane in Lord Valley’s Hemlock Farms community. Hemlock Farms Fire & Rescue were on the scene in a matter of minutes followed by fire crews from Blooming Grove, Dingmans and Milford.
According to Hemlock Farms Fire Chief Robert Palumbo, the firefighters managed to contain the blaze to the rear of the home and the occupants, home at the time, made it out unharmed.
There’s not much left of the 500-seat Pocono Playhouse that provided summer entertainment for 62 years. (Photo by Susan Koomar)
By Susan Koomar
MOUNTAINHOME – State police fire investigators are trying to determine why the historic Pocono Playhouse blazed into charred ruins early last Friday.
Police returned to the property on Monday. An investigator for an insurance adjustor visited the scene Tuesday but did not go into the ruins because state police still control the site. However, the parking lot entrance is blocked by just a few orange cones and trespassers could easily explore the blackened building at the quiet end of Playhouse Lane in Barrett Township.
Philadelphia-area businessman Ralph Miller owns both Pocono Playhouse and Bucks County Playhouse. Two of Miller’s other theaters burned in fires later determined to be arson fueled by kerosene. No charges were filed in either case. Miller told an area newspaper last week that his insurance company paid half of the claims and would not have done so if he were considered a suspect in the crimes. Woodstock Playhouse in New York burned in 1988, Falmouth Playhouse on Cape Cod, Mass., in 1994.
Pocono Playhouse is likely worth in excess of $500,000.
Neighbor Edna Reisenwitz was awakened by a stranger pounding on her door around 1 a.m. Friday. Reisenwitz looked outside to see the theater in flames.
“Someone set it. That’s all,” she said. “The whole thing was on fire from down in front to all in the back. It was just burning all the way back. The way that was burning, it had to be something keeping it burning. I just can’t get over it.”
Reisenwitz, an elderly widow, has lived next to the playhouse for more than 50 years.
The playhouse concluded its 62nd season a few weeks ago.
In its early years, the theater hosted Hollywood stars such as Academy Award-winner Shelley Winters. In the 1980s, TV stars came to perform in summer stock. Examples were Gavin MacLeod of “Love Boat,” who performed in “Mass Appeal,” and Ken Howard of “The White Shadow,” starring in “The Rainmaker.” In more recent years, Eddie Mekka of “Laverne and Shirley” sang and danced in musicals at the 500-seat playhouse.
An early morning grill fire had Westfall and Matamoras firefighters responding to Perkins Restaurant at Westfall Towne Center.
Firefighters responded to Monday’s 6:10 AM call and extinguished the flames on the kitchen grill with portable fire extinguishers. Employees could be seen waiting in the parking lot for the all clear from Westfall fire personnel.
Damage is believed to be very minimal, and the restaurant should open later this morning.
HARRISBURG – Guidelines and protections for using controlled burns as an effective habitat and land-management tool in Pennsylvania were recently passed into law unanimously by the Pennsylvania House and Senate and signed into law by Gov. Rendell. The Prescribed Burning Practices Act limits criminal and civil liability for people contracting for and performing the prescribed burns—if burn plans are reviewed and meet standards set by DCNR.
“Fire is critical to the health of many types of Pennsylvania habitat, including the oak and pine forests and the barrens that grace our mountaintops,” said Nels Johnson, the Pennsylvania Director of Conservation Programs for The Nature Conservancy. “This law will provide guidance and legal protection to land managers who understand the ecology of fire and want to embrace the best practices for managing public and private landscapes.”
Controlled burns are used to reduce the accumulation of dead wood and other debris in the forest, making severe wildfires less frequent, saving both property and lives. The Nature Conservancy maintains that fire adds nutrients to the soil, lets sunlight into overcrowded forests and controls some insect pests. According to TNC, low-intensity fire, repeated frequently over the years, can transform a tangled, strangled bunch of trees into a healthy, productive forest.
MILFORD TOWNSHIP Tuesday 10:30PM by Don Quick The Milford Fire Department responded to the Douglas Housekeeper residence on Schocopee Road Tuesday evening around 10:00 PM after receiving a phone call that the house was struck by lightning during this evening’s brief thunderstorm.
Mr. Housekeeper told this reporter that when his home had been struck “ the lights went out briefly, the phone rang with no one there, and when the lights came back on, I noticed the cable converter box was smoking”. He correctly decided to err on the side of caution and called 911.
The Milford Fire Department responded and conducted an investigation led by Assistant Chief Tony Mann. The determination was made that aside from the cable box, all was okay.
Command was terminated and the fire department returned to quarters at 10:25 PM.
Readers will recall a very different result when the homeowner chose not to call 911 after their home was struck by lightning resulting in the destruction of a James Street home in Milford Borough last month.
Click on the picture of the earlier fire to see part of the Pike County Press video of that fire.
