Fire officials still search for the cause of a Sunday afternoon blaze in Pottsville.
One man is temporarily homeless and a neighborhood is lucky this one didn’t get further out of control.
Fire in 600 Block of North Centre Street in Pottsville
(Photo: Coal Region Canary Mobile)
Just before 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Pottsville police and firefighters rushed to 620 North Centre St. Thick smoke could be seen rising from the neighborhood all the way up on Route 61.
On the scene, multiple city fire departments responded quickly. The Canary spotted at least one Pottsville police officer walking away from the scene holding a fire extinguisher. Meanwhile, firefighters busily worked to get another hydrant open to get another line of water on the fire.
(Photo: Coal Region Canary Mobile)
The fire impacted the entire 600 block of North Centre St. in Pottsville. Neighbors watched from the sidewalk and porch as firefighters made quick work of the scene.
According to a report from WNEP-TV, one resident from 620 North Centre was forced from his home. The Canary saw police briefly questioning a man who likely was the resident of the affected home.
Lucky Neighborhood
Pottsville’s excellent emergency services personnel were on this fire about as quickly as it was called in to dispatchers.
Whether that police officer holding the extinguisher was able to use it to tamp down flames until firefighters got there or not, the thick column of smoke pouring from 620 North Centre quickly diminished. It was about 15 minutes for the scene to go from slightly panicked to under control.
And this is a good thing for this section of Pottsville. The affected residence is in the middle of a row of just less than 20 brick homes. Fire could have quickly spread to other homes in this neighborhood without that quick work on the scene.
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