Fire burns in auto service garage attic
PENN TWP — Firefighters were called to a single-car crash near the intersection of Route 8 and Church Road at around 3:20 p.m. Monday, where crews already were responding to a potential structure fire.
“They were calling us to go to a motor vehicle accident, I said, ‘No, it’s a structure fire,’” said Bill Glace, chief of Penn Township Volunteer Fire Department.
Middlesex Township police responded to the crash, in which a woman driver who was pregnant was evaluated by Butler Ambulance Service, according to Glace. Glace said he did not know what caused the crash or if the woman was injured or taken to a hospital from the scene.
Glace said Jim Kriley Sales & Service reported a fire in the garage building at around 3:15 p.m., which apparently was coming from the roof. When crews arrived, they found a fire in the attic of the garage that was burning through the roof.
“When we got here, there was smoke in the upper stairs area near the back,” Glace said. “By the time we got in there, it blew through the back wall and was burning in the attic.”
Glace didn’t have a cost estimate for the damage, but said there was some water damage to the attic and roof. He also said no one was injured by the fire or in the process of fighting the fire.
The cause of the fire also is unknown, Glace said.
The northbound lanes at the intersection of Route 8 and Church Road were closed and traffic was being routed into the center lane by flaggers.
In addition to Penn Township Volunteer Fire Department and Middlesex Township police, Middlesex Township Volunteer Fire Company, Saxonburg VFC and Penn Township police responded to the scene. Crews began departing the scene at around 4:45 p.m. Traffic resumed by 5 p.m.
