Fire engulfs 2 vacant houses in Arnold
State police are investigating the cause of a fire Thursday night that destroyed two neighboring vacant houses in Arnold.
Assistant Fire Chief Brian Gouza said flames engulfed a two-story house at 1410 Third Ave. and spread to an adjacent, wood-frame house at 1412 Third Ave.
The fire broke out shortly before 8 p.m.
No injuries were reported.
State police could not be reached on Friday for an update on the investigation of the fire’s cause.
Filicia Jackson lives next to the two houses, in a house she’s rented for seven years and shares with her 13-year-old son and two granddaughters, 12 and 9. She was out shopping for birthday gifts for her son when the fire broke out.
“I got a call that the house next door was on fire,” she said Friday. “I dropped everything and came running home. By then the big flames were out.”
At least three ladder trucks were used for an exterior attack as the roof of the first house collapsed. Arnold firefighters received assistance from a slew of neighboring departments. Crews began clearing the scene around 10:45 p.m.
“The fire was so heavy when we got here it was only a matter of minutes before it started to cave in,” Gouza said.
Firefighters eventually used ladders to get to the second floor of both buildings.
Crews also battled freezing temperatures and occasional snow. A rehab tent was set up as a warming station.
Gouza said there were no issues with water or manpower.
A woman who said she owns one of the houses said it was vacant and did not have electrical power. She would not give her name. Jackson and another neighbor, Tasha Williams, who lives a street away, also said that no one lived in either house.
Gouza said there was power to 1410 Third Ave., but would not speculate regarding the cause of the fire.
“We had a hot power line down whenever I got here,” he said Thursday night at the scene. “At this time, I am not at liberty to say (what caused it). It’s still under investigation.”
Jackson said there was water damage to the attic of her house from the firefighting effort.
On Friday, she said the second floor of her house still smelled like smoke. Jackson said that during the fire, “You could see the smoke in my house.”
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