MOUNT VERNON — An hour and fifteen minutes after fire crews had cleared the scene of a house fire on Newark Road, another house fire a few miles south brought several Mount Vernon firefighters right back into active service.
A neighbor about a block north noticed flames coming from the back of the home of Charles and Joann Kerr at 839 Southridge Drive. The neighbor called 9-1-1, and the MVFD responded with 12 firefighters, two engines and a medic. College Township also sent a mutual aid engine company to assist.
No one was home at the time the fire broke out according to MVFD Assistant Chief Chris Menapace who served as incident commander. He said the homeowner did return while fire crews were extinguishing the fire.
Menapace said he could hear no audible smoke alarms while on the scene. He said the fire appears to have started on the back porch.
“Unattended coals from a woodburner involved the pile of seasoned firewood and deck in fire,” Menapace said. “The fire then spread into the home, and the heat and flame spread into the attic.”
The initial hose team went into the garage, and a secondary hose team went to the rear of the house to extinguish the fire on the back porch. Firefighters found flames and heavy black smoke in this area.
On the roof, teams cut a hole in the garage roof to ventilate heat and smoke. Menapace said firefighters also popped out vents at both ends of the attic for ventilation.
“The men did an excellent job at a quick knockdown, and we went into overhaul and salvage,” the assistant chief said.
