The cause of a fire that destroyed a downtown Jeannette building Friday night is under investigation, Jeannette Fire Chief Bill Frye said.
Crews responded to the intersection of Clay Avenue and South Fifth Street shortly before 8:30 p.m. after police patrolling the area found smoke coming from the commercial structure. Upon arrival, fire crews found heavy flames in the basement and first floor, and “fire blew out of the building into the street,” Frye said.
Crews are on scene of a working fire in Jeannette. pic.twitter.com/XoMP9Yz5pC
— Megan Tomasic (@MeganTomasic) November 7, 2020
By 10 p.m., flames had crept to the second floor and were peeking out the roof. Two ladder trucks dumped water on the roof, causing black smoke to roll out of the front windows.
The chief said the building is a total loss.
The building was not legally occupied, Frye said, but he noted people have lived in the building illegally in the past.
Initial calls for the fire reported possible entrapment, and while officials did not find any signs of entrapment, Frye said they cannot rule it out because of debris and collapsed floors.
“We made a search of what we can at this point,” he said. “There’s a collapse about halfway through the building from the second floor into the basement, so we lost part of the second floor and part of the first floor. We searched from front to back on both sides to that opening, and we have not located anybody trapped at this point.”
About 50 people gathered at the scene as firefighters worked to extinguish the flames, including Susan Bitens of Grapeville.
Bitens was sitting on her porch when she heard sirens. Her daughter sent her a picture of the scene.
“I’m so sad,” Bitens said. “We’ve had so many fires over the last few years.”
Jenna Elias, 17, of Jeannette was also home when the fire broke out. She said she could see the flames from her house and went down with her family to see what was going on.
Fire crews from Irwin, Grandview, Harrison City and Greensburg were among several that responded. Officials remained on scene about 11:30 p.m.
