Serious damage but no injuries in house fire
A Florence Street home sustained extensive damage in a fouralarm fire, but there were no injuries, Kingston Deputy Fire Chief Wayne Platte said Monday.
The fire at 95 Florence St., reported to Ulster County 911 at 5:01 p.m. Sunday, is believed to have been caused by “careless disposal of smoking materials,” Platte said. He said the blaze resulted in significant fire, smoke and water damage to the house and melted the siding on a neighboring house at 93 Florence St.
Amy Saehloff, one of two people who lives in the single-family home at 95 Florence St., was home when the fire broke out and escaped safely with a family dog before firefighters arrived, Platte said.
Saehloff got out after her neighbor, Christine Russomanno, noticed black smoke coming from the home and knocked on her front door, the deputy chief said.
The other resident, Paul Saehloff, was not home, Platte said.
A second alarm was called at 5:05 p.m., a third at 5:07 p.m. and a fourth at 5:16 p.m., Platte said. He said the fourth alarm was called because more personnel were needed to protect 93 Florence St.
Platte said the Ulster Hose fire company assisted at the scene.
Platte said the fire was “wind driven” and that flames and smoke were visible at the rear of the building when firefighters arrived. The main body of the blaze was on the rear porch deck and in a rear living space and extended into the attic, he said.
Firefighters removed several windows and cut holes in the roof, and the home was later posted as uninhabitable, Platte said.
Platte said all units cleared the scene at 8:34 p.m. but that firefighters returned to check for flare-ups at 10:30 p.m. They found none, he said.
The Kingston Fire Department’s new ladder truck was not used at the scene because some members of the department have not completed training on it due to vacation schedules, Platte said.