Three fires in the past 24 hours have left 18 people homeless in Cumberland and Dauphin Counties. Fire officials credit working smoke alarms with saving lives.
Two of the fires - one in a townhouse complex and the other in a mobile home - were reported late yesterday in Upper Allen Township. The third fire broke out early this morning in a duplex in Middletown.
The fire in the townhouse building in the 600 block of Allenview Drive damaged five of the six units late yesterday afternoon. The unit where the fire started was destroyed. A state police fire marshal is investigating the cause. It is believed to be accidental. Eleven people are being housed by the Red Cross. All smoke detectors were working.
A mobile home fire at Rollo Court left two adults and a child without a home. The cause was electrical in nature.
Just after three this morning a fire in Middletown displaced four people. Units were dispatched to a duplex in the 500 block of North Spring Street. Fire Chief Ken Whitebread says the occupants escaped safely because of working smoke alarms, which he finds a little ironic
Whitebread:
“Saturday we changed our clock. And it’s change your clocks, change your batteries in your smoke detectors. It activated and alerted those folks and they were safely able to get out. The occupants in the other part of the building were notified and they were safely evacuated from the building.”
No one was reported injured there. A cause of the blaze has not been determined.
Fire officials are quick to point out when smoke alarms help prevent injury and death. They are relatively inexpensive. And if your house isn’t protected, contact your local fire station. They may have ones to give away.-
Two of the fires - one in a townhouse complex and the other in a mobile home - were reported late yesterday in Upper Allen Township. The third fire broke out early this morning in a duplex in Middletown.
The fire in the townhouse building in the 600 block of Allenview Drive damaged five of the six units late yesterday afternoon. The unit where the fire started was destroyed. A state police fire marshal is investigating the cause. It is believed to be accidental. Eleven people are being housed by the Red Cross. All smoke detectors were working.
A mobile home fire at Rollo Court left two adults and a child without a home. The cause was electrical in nature.
Just after three this morning a fire in Middletown displaced four people. Units were dispatched to a duplex in the 500 block of North Spring Street. Fire Chief Ken Whitebread says the occupants escaped safely because of working smoke alarms, which he finds a little ironic
Whitebread:
“Saturday we changed our clock. And it’s change your clocks, change your batteries in your smoke detectors. It activated and alerted those folks and they were safely able to get out. The occupants in the other part of the building were notified and they were safely evacuated from the building.”
No one was reported injured there. A cause of the blaze has not been determined.
Fire officials are quick to point out when smoke alarms help prevent injury and death. They are relatively inexpensive. And if your house isn’t protected, contact your local fire station. They may have ones to give away.-