A fast-moving fire tore through two homes on Spring Street in Gloversville, destroying one structure, heavily damaging the other, displacing four adults and killing a dog. Firefighters battled the blaze for hours overnight as hydrant trouble complicated efforts to get water on the flames.
Gloversville firefighters were called to 176 Spring Street at 10:28 p.m. and arrived within three minutes to find fire at both 176 and 174 Spring St., according to dailygazette.com. Crews found flames threatening both addresses, and Captain Ed Martelle requested additional resources and an all-hands response, as reported by Newport Dispatch.
The building at 176 Spring Street is considered a total loss, while the house at 174 Spring Street is repairable, according to news10.com. Four adults were displaced, and one dog died in the fire, the outlet reported. No firefighter or civilian injuries were reported, per Newport Dispatch.
Defensive Attack Amid Hydrant Trouble
Firefighters immediately moved into defensive operations, attacking the fire from the exterior to contain it and keep it from spreading further, officials said in an account carried by cbs6albany.com. A heavy volume of fire, along with hydrant issues that hampered the water supply, complicated the response, the station reported.
Johnstown firefighters responded with additional personnel, while Berkshire firefighters provided station coverage for Gloversville during the response, Newport Dispatch reported. Lake Valley EMS stood by at the scene, and Gloversville police assisted with traffic control and scene security, according to the outlet. All units returned to service at 3:55 a.m., the same time cited by the dailygazette.com report for when the scene was cleared.
Conflicting Word on the Fire's Cause
Accounts of the investigation's status diverge. Dailygazette.com reported that investigators determined the cause was accidental, while wnyt.com reported that the cause remained under investigation by Gloversville and Johnstown fire investigators, the Gloversville Police Department and the New York State Office of Fire Prevention and Control Arson Investigation Unit. Newport Dispatch's account likewise described the cause as under investigation by those same agencies.
Second Fire in Two Weeks for Gloversville Crews
The Spring Street fire marks the second significant blaze Gloversville firefighters have handled in recent weeks. On Oct. 16, the department responded to a fire on Washington Street that damaged two buildings, per news10.com. That earlier fire spread from 90 Washington Street to 92 Washington Street before firefighters arrived at 4:13 a.m., displacing 11 people, according to a separate dailygazette.com report on the Washington Street incident. Firefighters needed about an hour to extinguish those flames and rescued “an armful of cats” from 92 Washington Street, the outlet noted, in a response that, unlike the Spring Street fire, ended with no reported injuries and both two-story, two-family homes evacuated safely.
