SCHUYLKILL COUNTY, Pa. – At 6:50 PM on Sunday, June 10, Schuylkill County 9-1-1 sent a first alarm structure assignment to the area of 116 Island Road in the Mahanoy Plane section of Gilberton for a reported house fire. The first alarm included Districts 44 (Gilberton), 43 (Frackville), 45 (Girardville), 48 (Mahanoy City), 64 (Shenandoah) and Englewood Engine 369.

Marshal 44 arrived on the scene shortly after dispatch and found a vacant two story single family dwelling with fire showing from all sides. Mahanoy Plane Engine 44-10 was first to arrive and stopped short of the fire building which was located on a small heavily wooded lane and was followed by Engine 44-15.

A water supply was secured from a nearby hydrant but the municipal water supply does not provide adequate water for a working fire which led command to request a tanker task force. Tankers from Fountain Springs, Gordon, Mahanoy City, Ryan Township and Shenandoah were sent on the task force along with an engine from Shenandoah Heights, a ladder from Ashland and engines from Fountain Springs and Ryan Township.

Multiple lines were stretched to all sides of the fire building including blitz fires and crews attacked the fire from the exterior as structural compromise was already evident. Mahanoy City Chief 48 took command of the operations on the C/D sides.

Engine 369 was assigned water supply and began to pump water from the tankers down into the scene.

The bulk of the fire was knocked down within 30 minutes of firefighters arriving on the scene. Crews continued to pour water on the building from the outside and in an attempt to get a better angle, crews moved a blitzfire up a steep embankment and began to flow from the top of the nearby railroad bed.

Around an hour into the incident, command declared most of the fire under control and began to release some of the tankers. Command also requested a State Police Fire Marshal to the scene.