Washington firefighters respond to multiple fires over weekend
A small house in the 700 block of Catfish Avenue in Washington burned Saturday afternoon in what the state police fire marshal has determined to be arson.
Katie Anderson/Observer-Reporter
A small house in the 700 block of Catfish Avenue in Washington burned Saturday afternoon, in what the state police fire marshal has determined to be arson.
Washington firefighters responded to multiple residential fires over the weekend, one of which was determined to be arson.
Washington fire Chief Gerald Coleman said firefighters responded Saturday afternoon to the 700 block of Catfish Avenue for a small house that was on fire. The four-room home had just been rented to a woman who had been moving her furniture and belongings that day. Coleman said she was “about 95% moved in” when the call came in about 4:30 p.m.
“The fire marshal was out at the scene yesterday and determined it to be arson,” Coleman said.
He said it had appeared that someone went into the house to light something on fire. No injuries were reported, Coleman said. The woman was able to salvage some items such as photographs, but many of her belongings and much of the home were destroyed, Coleman said.
The state police fire marshal will likely work with Washington police detectives to investigate the arson, Coleman said. City police, EMS crews and firefighters from North Strabane and Peters townships also responded.
Later that night, firefighters responded to a fire at 910 E. Maiden St., which is an apartment complex. Coleman said smoke detectors went off on the second floor, and the residents evacuated safely.
“It was a trash can that was smoldering,” Coleman said.
A few hours later, about 1:40 a.m. Sunday, they responded to a third call at 40 McAdam Ave. for the report of a residential fire. Coleman said that fire was caused by an electric cord that melted and caught fire. Coleman was unsure how many occupants were in that building, and no injuries were reported.
The last two calls, Coleman said, didn’t have very much fire or smoke damage due to fire alarm systems and working smoke detectors -an important message local fire departments emphasize in October, which is Fire Prevention Month.
“These were absolutely examples of why we preach that smoke detectors save lives,” Coleman said. “Other than some cleanup, they had little to no damage and no injuries or loss of life.”