Lack of water hampers firefighters in Washington Twp.
WASHINGTON TWP — Lack of water due to drought conditions hampered fire crews battling a garage fire in the township Thursday afternoon, Oct. 9.
Multiple departments from across Butler County and neighboring counties were called to the fire in the 2100 block of Branchton Road. The fire was reported shortly after 5:30 p.m., and a second alarm was called around 5:45 p.m. due to the high amount of visible smoke.
“There were no water sources handy because of the drought,” Ryan Enscoe, chief of the North Washington Volunteer Fire Department, said. “We use streams, creeks, and ponds. At our fill sites where we would normally go to get water, there’s no water.”
No one was injured or hospitalized, and the only other structure to be damaged was a fence. The fire took roughly 20 minutes to get under control.
Enscoe says that the cause of the fire is unknown, but multiple flammable objects were located near the garage.
“There were a few propane tanks and a gas can inside, and a quad dirt bike,” Enscoe said
