Firefighters spent much of Thursday battling a massive fire that destroyed an Ashland neighborhood.
Right now, there are more than 20 people homeless from 9 different families in the community.
In total, six Ashland homes were completely destroyed along the 1100 block of Brock Street.
Check out the scene before firefighters arrived. This Facebook video from user JJ Heaton shows a fully engulfed home with some dramatic fire.
And it’s lucky they captured that scene. According to another eyewitness on the scene of the fire, it was not long before half the destroyed buildings were totally engulfed and collapsed.
Facebook user JC Kreisher writes: “After covering many fires, I can’t say I remember an incident where there was so much damage to occupied homes in such a short time. By the 20 minute mark, the majority of the homes were collapsed into a pile of rubble.”
Ashland Fire Spreads Quickly
The first firefighters arrived on the scene in Ashland just before 3 p.m. Thursday.
In about 90 minutes, the fire spread from one home to six.
Two houses in that time were completely collapsed. Another is partially collapsed.
The Aftermath
The Red Cross of Eastern Pennsylvania says 9 families were impacted and 20 people or more are homeless tonight in Ashland.
The #RedCross is on the scene of a multi family fire in Ashland, Schuylkill County that has displaced 9 families totaling 20 people. pic.twitter.com/O75vPZ3InM
— RedCrossEasternPA (@RedCrossEastPA) February 21, 2019
Coal Region Canary will provide updates on this story as it develops.
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