Fire Reported At 5 Hemlock Street

A fire caused extensive damage to a three story tenement Wednesday afternoon at 5 Hemlock Street.

District Chief Scott Kruger says firefighters attempted to put out the fire from the inside, but the situation became too dangerous.

"We spent about ten minutes inside the building trying to fight the fire but it became unsafe for the firefighters. The stairway collapsed and fire started to burn underneath them, so that's when I decided to pull all the crews out of the house," said Kruger.

All of the tenants were out of the building when firefighters arrived around 1:30pm.

Occupant Neil Pacheco told WBSM News he was the last one out of the building. He says he knocked on every door making sure everyone was out.

District Chief Kruger says firefighters will probably spend the rest of the day wetting down hot sports. He says the roof collapsed, but the house appeared to be salvageable.