Fire kills man in Pitcairn
Smoke thwarted attempted rescue
A man died in a fire Friday afternoon that also destroyed a home in Pitcairn.
The blaze was reported shortly after 3 p.m. in the 1400 block of Wall Avenue.
Matt Brown, chief of Allegheny County emergency services, said emergency responders arrived at the scene to find an intense blaze.
“Flames coming out of every door and every window, particularly on the first floor,” he said.
A Pitcairn police officer and another person entered the house in an attempt to rescue the man trapped inside, but they could not reach him, Pitcairn police Chief Scott Farally said.
“The smoke was too intense and they had to back out,” Chief Farally said.
Fire departments from Pitcairn, Monroeville, Wilkins, East McKeesport and Westmoreland County assisted in battling the fire, which was under control by 5:24 p.m., more than two hours after it started.
The house was a total loss and much of the roof had caved in by the time the fire was out.
Chief Brown said the victim was found near the back of the house, on the first floor. He had not been identified.
Authorities were still investigating Friday night, but Chief Brown said the fire did not appear to be suspicious. “There’s no sign of anything criminal, no sign of anything unusual,” he said.
Francis Cole, 59, who lives two houses down from the residence where the fire occurred, said a family lived in the house, but he didn't know anyone there very well.
He said he had just returned home from work when he noticed the fire. “I looked out my side window,” Mr. Cole said. “I said, ‘Holy cow, the house is on fire.’ The whole back of the house was in flames.”