Two alarm fire on Penny Lane on May 6
The cause of a Penny Lane fire is still under investigation, but it’s believed an unidentified electrical problem in the garage roof may be the origin.
At 2:19 a.m. on May 6, Cornwall Fire Department was dispatched to a supposed house fire with people trapped at 6 Penny Ln. Anne Munson, who lives across the street, noticed the fire and woke up her husband, Russ, who promptly called 911 and then ran across to knock on his neighbor’s front door. Ashley Locke and her boyfriend Sean Coleman were still asleep, but safely exited the home.
Volunteers arrived at a working structure fire involving the attached two-car garage. An engine truck was first on the scene and a four-inch supply line was laid at the entrance to the private road. Firefighters deployed an initial attack line between the garage and the house, as the fire was burning the exterior of the house and into the attic.
Minutes after Chief Pat Hines’ arrival, a second alarm was transmitted for mutual aid for three tankers, because there are no fire hydrants in the area, and a FAST team, in case any firefighter needed rescuing. Cornwall-on-Hudson, Fort Montgomery, and Salisbury Mills responded with tanker trucks, and the FAST Team arrived from Vails Gate.
Hines said Cornwall Fire Department set up an engine on the 9W ramp to pump water to the pumper on the scene. The tankers pumped water to the engine to form a water relay. He said this is standard operating procedure as much of Cornwall south of Angola Road and Rt. 32 is not serviced by fire hydrants. He added the department has also mapped out streams and ponds to draft water from in order to extinguish a blaze.
The fire was under control within 30 minutes followed by 90 minutes of extensive overhaul to wet down debris. All units were back in service by 6:30 a.m.
Hines said the two occupants have not been able to return home due to extensive smoke damage and the fact electricity had to be cut. He said the structure is intact, but the family has been staying with relatives in the meantime. The house was undergoing renovations, and much of the couple’s personal belongings was destroyed in the fire.
