Crime & Safety
UPDATED: Fire Tears Through Russell Drive Home
The investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.
Update - 7:24 p.m.
When firefighters arrived to Russell Drive in the Rose Valley section of Upper Southampton Thursday afternoon, fire was blazing and heavy smoke was billowing from the roof of a single-family dwelling.
Fire crews quickly went into service and worked for more than an hour to fully extinguished the fire, which was reported at around 3:30 p.m., officials said.
At one point, firefighters were evacuated due to the intensity of the flames.
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Township Fire Marshal Mark Showmaker said The homeowner was in the house at the time of the blaze but was not hurt.
Shoemaker said he expects to be investigating the scene for several hours.
While the fire was classified as a 1-alarm blaze, incident commanders requested additional fire units for manpower purposes, officials said.
Neighbors and onlookers, many with their cell phones out, filled the Rose Valley streets to see the commotion. Several people were spotted comforting the homeowner.
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Firefighters from Bryn Athyn, Feasterville, Lower Moreland, Lower Southampton, Trevose, Warminster and Willow Grove assisted the Southampton Fire Company. The Tri-Hampton Rescue Squad also responded to the scene.
Aside from Shoemaker, fire marshals from Newtown, Northampton, Lower Moreland and Upper Moreland were also at the fire location.
Initial report listed below:
A house fire broke out in the area of Rose Valley Road and Russell Drive around 3:30 p.m. this afternoon, according to reports from Patch readers.
Emergency alerts state that firefighters arrived to heavy smoke billowing from a home on the 100 block of Russell Way.
The Breaking News Network reported that as the crews worked to contain the blaze, fire began to show through the roof of the two-story, single-family dwelling.
According to BNN, the fire has been placed under control within the past half hour, and extended operations are now underway at the scene.
