Harrison fire captain: Hoarding contributes to stubborn house fire

Firefighters spent more than two hours knocking down a fire that broke out Thursday night at a Harrison home because of “very heavy hoarding conditions,” Harrison Hills Fire Captain Jules Beer said.

No one was seriously injured in the fire that ripped through the house, according to Beer. Two firefighters were treated by medics for heat exhaustion.

The house is on Rocky Road, a private road off Freeport Road near Route 908.

“Once we got in there and got past the hoarding conditions, we were able to put a ‘bread-and-butter’ fire out,” Beer said outside the still-smoldering home as dozens of firefighters worked behind him shortly before 7 p.m. “We just have some extensive cleanup because of the hoarding conditions, but other than that the fire is out and under control.”

Authorities received a report of the fire shortly before 4:45 p.m., prompting the response of at least five volunteer fire companies and police and medics.

Responders arrived to find the house’s occupants had made it out safely.

Firefighting crews work at the scene of a residential fire in Natrona Heights @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/rDk535y3oU

— Shane Dunlap (@shanedunlap) December 31, 2020

But the fire took longer than expected to extinguish because stacks of personal items and furniture such as dressers crowded the interior of house, making it difficult to navigate clear pathways to get the source of the blaze in a back room of the home, Beer said.

“There was just a lot of extra kindling in there and everything to light up,” Beer said.

Crews also faced the challenge of getting the main water hose up the windy, hilly private roadway in muddy snow amid freezing temperatures.

It’s unclear what caused the fire and how many people were inside when it broke out.

The home’s occupants could not be reached.

Police diverted traffic while a stretch of Freeport Road between Logan Lane and Rocky Road were closed. That stretch of Freeport Road was still closed at 8 p.m.

Volunteer firefighters assisted from hose companies including Harrison Hills, Hilltop, Citizens and Eureka.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.